ABOUT / THE STORY OF VERA
Our mission statement:
The Vera Project fuels personal and community transformation through collaborative, youth-driven engagement in music and art.
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VERA is an all-ages volunteer-fueled music and arts venue. By engaging participants at all levels of music production and community organizing, Vera fulfills its mission to foster a participatory creative culture through popular music concerts, arts programs, experiential learning and volunteer opportunities for all ages, especially young people.Vera’s programs are always all ages, with a focus on young people ages 14 to 24. Most Vera programs are at the Seattle Center venue, and include:
Popular music concerts
Audio engineering training
Youth-driven governance
Visual art exhibits
Live and studio recording
Leadership training
Silkscreen printing/classes
Event production training
Internships
These activities are initiated and driven collaboratively by Vera’s volunteers, staff, Board of Directors and youth-led Membership.
Weekly concerts promote artistic experimentation and excellence in a professional setting, leveraging industry-standard technology to showcase music and arts. Classes fuse with experiential learning opportunities and a volunteer-driven structure that engages young people in the arts, fosters inter-generational communication and gives constituents the skills necessary to pursue their creative and professional passions. The skills participants gain at Vera activate future creativity, careers and leadership within Vera and in the greater creative community. Vera engages thousands in the arts, develops the future of the music industry and supports a vibrant Seattle culture.
“Youth need [Vera] because it is truly the only place you can feel integral and important to the progress of something you care about at that age. Leading the Gallery Committee taught me a lot about my capacity for leadership.”
– Dylan Rupert, 17, Vera volunteer since 2006