All Are Welcome Beer: Meet our guest bartenders

 

Serve a great cause while getting served a great beer — by a great Minnesotan!

On Thursday, April 6, All Are Welcome Here and Lakes & Legends Brewing Company are co-hosting an event, All Are Welcome Beer, to raise awareness for diversity and inclusivity in our community and to raise money for the ACLU of Minnesota, local champions fighting for the rights of All. 

Lakes & Legends will release a new brew made exclusively for this event: All Are Welcome Beer, and local champions of diversity and inclusivity will serve your beer at the bar. 100% of tips and 25% of profits from All Are Welcome Beer go directly to the ACLU. So order a round for your friends — be sure to tip your guest bartenders!

 

R.T. RYBAK // 6:00-7:00 PM

In his dozen years as mayor of Minneapolis, R.T. Rybak's love for our community and passion for equality, whether for marriage, among races, within education, or between cities, was contagious. As best expressed by Star Tribune reporter, Kim Ode, "R.T. Rybak loves Minneapolis like a middle-school crush. You imagine postcards on his bedroom wall of the Guthrie, “Spoonbridge and Cherry,” the Midtown Global Market, Minnehaha Falls, all connected with strands of pink yarn." He swims in lakes Harriet and Calhoun, cross-country skis around Lake of the Isles, and even crowd surfed — as mayor — during a "Rock for Democracy" event at First Avenue. In 2016, Rybak was named the CEO and President of The Minneapolis Foundatio which distributes millions of dollars in grants for education, civic engagement, economic vitality, arts, community health, and environmental conservation. Rybak is also the author of "Pothole Confidential," a memoir about his 12 years as mayor of Minneapolis. His life-long dedication to Minneapolis inspires all of us to be better Minnesotans. No wonder we all want to share a beer with him.

NORA MCINERNY // 6:00-7:00 PM

After her then-boyfriend, Aaron Purmort, was diagnosed with stage IV glioblastoma in 2011, Nora McInern started her blog, My Husband’s Tumor. It told the story of their relationship, from the day they met, to the night of their wedding, to the birth of their son, to the loss of their second child and Nora’s father. And finally to the loss of Aaron himself. Through it all, McInerny bloomed as a writer, recording every heart-wrenching moment as a community of readers grew with each post. By the time Aaron passed away in November 2014, more than 200,000 people were following along. Those readers stuck with McInerny as she founded hte non-profit Still Kickin, published her first book, a memoir It's Okay to Laugh (Crying is Cool, Too), and created the podcast Terrible, Thanks for Askin with American Public Media. “She’s a bad-ass, her own person, unapologetic about who she is," said Julia Cheiffetz, executive editor at Dey Street Books. "What distinguishes Nora is her fearlessness in terms of telling it like it is in a way that speaks to other people and gives them permission to tell their truth."

 

JOHN MUNSON // 6:00-7:00 PM

Let's be honest, ALL of us Minnesotans have wanted to share a beer with John Munson — to geek out over the Beach Boy's Pet Sounds, to ask advice about growing an impressive mustache, or to simply thank him for providing the sound track to our lives. Munson is a card carrying member of the ACLU, a super fan of the First Amendment, an enthusiastic beer lover -- and the amazing bassist for some of Minnesota's most iconic bands including Trip Shakespeare, The New Standards and, most successfully, Semisonic. He was also the music director and bassist of The Witnesses — the house band for the popular, but now cancelled, American Public Media variety show, "Wits." When he's not wrestling bears or juggling fire, Munson writes, records and performs with The Twilight Hours. He is also the inspiration behind our stylish All Are Welcome Beer aprons.

MARIA ISA // 7:00-8:00 PM

Maria Isa is a singer, songwriter, actress, and activist born in Minnesota to NuyoRican (Puerto Ricans from New York) parents. Raised on St. Paul’s West Side, Maria soaked in the melting pot of Latin American culture and channeled it into performing arts and activism at an very early age. Isa boldly expresses her personal views on- and off-stage, and is passionate about sociopolitical issues including voting rights, racism, sexism, and police brutality. In 2014, she was awarded Best Breakthrough Performance at the TC Film Festival for her film debut as Angie Garcia in the Latino Independent Film Strike One. In 2010, she received the National Hispana Leadership Institute's "Rising Latina Star" award for her outstanding work with Youthrive which educates incarcerated youth in theTwin Cities. Most recently, she was a speaker at the Minnesota Women's March. And, be sure to check out her newest project, Latina Theory: A Spanglish Podcast.

 

ADAM LEVY // 7:00-8:00 PM

In 2012, songwriter Adam Levy of The Honeydog lost his son Daniel to suicide after a long struggle with mental illness. The tragedy altered every inch of his and his family's life. It left Levy creatively incapacitated. He spent much of the following three years sharing his story with other surviving parents and individuals, as well as trying to make sense of the inexplicable trauma. Gradually Levy started writing songs again. The songs didn't wallow in the unimaginable agony. Rather they dignified Daniel's suffering and short-lived artistic genius in the visual arts. The music became the album Naubinway. It buoyed Levy's spirit and left him hopeful for others who are suffering. Between touring and sharing his story, Levy plans on following up Naubinway with a coffee table book of his son Daniel's remarkable art, as well as finishing a memoir about Daniel's life and struggles and the family's grieving process.

SWEETPEA // 8:00-9:00 PM

Sweetpea, The Seismic Shake from the Land of 10,000 Lakes, has been teasing her way into the hearts of audiences for over 12 years. She’s been called a conductor of electricity -- known for her fierce looks, high-powered choreography, stunning musicality, with the ability of her energy to charm any room and fill any stage. A six-time competitor at The Burlesque Hall of Fame, she holds the titles of Most Dazzling Dancer (2013) and Duchess of Burlesque (2016). Sweetpea is a proud spokesperson for such charity events as Dining Out for Life, lends her talents to organizations such as Planned Parenthood, Human Rights Campaign, and Minnesotans United for All Families, and was a facilitator and personal trainer for Rainbow Health Initiative's Pounds-4-Pride campaign. When not onstage baring and sharing her love of life, she's working to help others discover, nurture and express theirs at Studio Sweet.

 

SEVEN // 8:00-9:00 PM

Seven, aka Butch Charming, is a welder, artist, instructor and DJ. Welder by day, Seven teaches for Dunwoody Institute as well as creates custom fabrication through her business INDUSTRYelle. You can see some of her work at Ambiente, City Food Studio and Chicago Ave. Fire Arts Center. She's even welded a project for NASA. In 2016, Seven was featured in an Emmy-award winning short film series for SciGirls Strategies on TPT - Twin Cities PBS. These 12 short films profiled young women from diverse cultural and professional backgrounds sharing both the challenges and triumphs of “a day in the life” in the science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) workforce. DJ by night, Seven creates masterpieces of dancing perfection. Working in a record store for many years, she started crafting her love of music and beats. You can dance to her sweet sets all around town, but next DJ Seven will be spinning at Velvet, a new dance night at The Gay 90's.

LAZERBEAK // 9:00-10:00 PM

Aaron Mader, known professionally as Lazerbea, is a Minneapolis-based artist and producer. Aside from being a founding member of the Doomtree collective, he is also the CEO and General Manager of Doomtree Records, handling the day-to-day operations, management, and inner workings of the crew and label. Over the past decade he has worked with a wide range of artists including Doomtree, Lizzo, Matt and Kim, Trampled By Turtles, Dessa, GAYNGS, P.O.S, Speedy Ortiz, Mac Lethal, Mixed Blood Majority, and The Plastic Constellations. In addition to original production and songwriting, Beak also works musically behind the scenes on commercials, movie trailers, TV shows, and remixes. He may have a busy schedule but Lazerbeak is never too busy to give back to the community. Beak is currently working with the Crisis Nursery and is also a member of the Injustice Boycott. Most recently, he returned to his alma matter, Hopkins High School (class of 2000), to talk candidly with students about beats, business and life.

 

P.O.S. // 9:00-10:00 PM

Minneapolis-bred rapper, punk philosopher, producer and co-founder of the hip hop collective Doomtree, Stefon Alexander, aka P.O.S, has always been a study in organized chaos and verbal anarchy — a portrait of a freewheeling, boundless, rules-be-damned method of a man always trying to make sense of a world that rarely does. In March, he released his first new music in more than three years to coincide with the anniversary of his kidney transplant, the nine-minute opus “Sleepdrone/Superposition”. This nearly nine-minute-long sprawling masterpiece touches on “being black, beefs, loves, hurts, victories, pride and the future” all while reflecting over the past two years since a kidney surgery sidelined him from making music. P.O.S. and other members of Doomtree have worked with many local charities including the Sexual Violence Center, Southside Family Nurturing Center, Hope Community Center, Kicker Project, and Tubman as well as local schools including FAIR school, Roosevelt High School, and Hopkins High School.

MINNESOTA ROLLERGIRLS //6:00-10:00 PM

The Minnesota RollerGirls project a positive, strong, athletic image because that's the kind of women they are! When they're not competing on the track, the Minnesota RollerGirls are dedicated to giving back to our community, and local and national charities. They are incredibly excited to be participating in the first ever WCCO/CBS Minnesota Pulling Together event, an epic tug of war tournament across the Mississippi River! All teams competing are doing so to raise donations for Fraser, an amazing organization that is the largest and most experienced provider of autism services in Minnesota. We're so thrilled that they can join us for All Are Welcome Beer. They may be serving your drink behind the bar or a tasty cupcake from a silver tray. If you're lucky, they might photobomb you at the #allarewelcomebeer selfie station. No guarantees.

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