The Davis Bike Church will be holding its first fundraiser in its four-year history tonight at Delta of Venus.
A line-up of local DJs, including Mr. Glass, Dogtones and the Bike Church’s own Deacon Morgan, will keep the turntables spinning for the evening.
Other members of the Bike Church will also be providing entertainment.
“We will probably have a bicycle dance competition with a prize and there may be another showing of the Bicycle Passover skit,” said Jason Moore, a UC Davis graduate student and member of the Bike Ministry, in an e-mail interview.
A bicycle dance competition is exactly what it sounds like: dancing with and on bicycles. According to Moore, a panel of expert judges will be looking to reward the most innovative dance.
Put another way, the plan is to “basically rock out and have fun while celebrating the bike!” said Siobhan Braybrook, a graduate student and member of the Bike Ministry in an e-mail interview.
Bike Church members will also be holding a raffle, with tickets costing $3 each.
“The prizes will be custom bicycles built by our ministers, bicycle accessories (bells, lights, etc.), Pachamama Fair Trade Coffee and Bike Church merchandise,” Moore said.
Braybrook said there would be two bikes being raffled off, which are “super flash-looking, not trashy Magnas.“
The Bike Church will also be selling an assortment of Bike Church gear to raise money, including patches, buttons, stickers and two varieties of T-shirts. One shirt design shows Jesus with a bicycle and asks the question, “What would Jesus ride?” while the other depicts the Hindu elephant god Ganesh wielding an array of bike tools.
The Bike Church is hoping to raise $2,000 over the course of the evening. The Bike Ministry has arranged for matching funds from private donors, up to an additional $2,000.
The money will be put towards the “Great Pedal Forward,” the Bike Church’s project to update and expand their current facilities. It will include “construction of two weather-proof, secure domes, construction of lean-tos for bicycle storage, solar electrification [for lights, music, computers and tools], a bicycle fence and an after-hours self-service station,” Moore said.
The Bike Church is also writing a handbook and working to receive official recognition as a nonprofit organization.
While this will be the Bike Church’s first fundraiser, they are no strangers to throwing parties. The Bike Church will also be holding its annual Burning Bike Festival later this month.
Tonight’s festivities begin at 9 at Delta of Venus.
J. DANA STUSTER can be reached at city@californiaaggie.com.XXX
