Community

AMOEBA believes in nurturing and supporting our local and global community.
We are committed to putting a part of our proceeds into people and organizations who work tirelessly to keep our earth safe and our local communities healthy. Our customers help us sustain that commitment and make those efforts possible.

WE’VE ALREADY RAISED OVER $150,000…

Amoeba Music has been doing all we can to help raise funds for Gulf Coast Relief.  We’re collecting donations at all three of our stores and holding in-store auctions in the Hollywood store. The auctions, hosted by special guests on the first Saturday of every month, feature memorabilia, collectables, concert tickets, promotional items and much more. There are so many organizations and charities doing a tremendous amount of work to help with local and global outreach. Amoeba has been working with the following organizations focusing on rebuilding the community, assisting the thousands of musicians who have lost everything as well as sheltering and nurturing the many orphaned animals throughout the Gulf Coast region.

 

  • New Orleans Musician’s Clinic
  • The Tipitina’s Foundation
  • The American Red Cross
  • Oxfam America
  • The Humane Society 

In order to help increase funds, we’ve been matching all individual donations and auction bids up to $1,000. To date, we have raised over $300,000 which has been sent to these 6 organizations:

New Orleans Musicians Clinic
NOMC is a non-profit occupational medicine and wellness partnership offering comprehensive health care to the musicians of New Orleans.  They are determined to keep Louisiana music alive and to relocate New Orleans musicians into the Lafayette / Acadiana community where they can remain a life force! 


Tipitina's Foundation


Started by the landmark New Orleans music venue, the Tipitina’s Foundation’s mission is to help save and rebuild the community of New Orleans. They are currently finding musicians housing, gigs and instruments while raising funds through donations and nationwide benefit concerts.


OXFAM America
For the first time in its 35-year history, OXFAM has launched a relief effort within the United States to help the residents of the Gulf Coast region. They have been distributing food, supplies, and electric generators to some of the hardest-hit areas, and are also providing emergency grants to local organizations in the region.


American Red Cross
To help with disaster recovery, The Red Cross assists thousands of victims with financial assistance, food, shelter, referrals as well as physical and mental health services.  Less than a month after Katrina, Hurricane Rita lashed the Gulf coast and left massive devastation in its wake. The American Red Cross serves the victims of Hurricane Rita as it has done with Hurricane Katrina, but must rely on the ongoing support of the American public.


Humane Society of America
The Humane Society’s Disaster Animal Response Teams have rescued thousands of animals in Louisiana and Mississippi - with many more still stranded and in need of care and new homes.

 

AIDS / LIFECYCLE
AIDS / LifeCycle is co-produced by the San Francisco AIDS Foundation and the L.A. Gay & Lesbian Center and is designed to advance their shared interests to end the pandemic and human suffering caused by AIDS.

In 2006, Amoeba supported one of our own: Amoebite and HIV positive pedaler, Craig Hermes. Through donation boxes in all of our stores, exposure on our web site and through our e-newsletter we helped Craig in raising the funds he needed to enroll in the ride.  In doing so, he became the first-ever dual-city fundraiser cycling 600 miles from San Francisco to Los Angeles over 7 days.

AIDS IS NOT OVER. 2006 marks a grim anniversary -- 25 years since the first reported case of what later came to be known as AIDS.  In California alone there are more than 47,000 people living with AIDS, and an estimated 94,000 to 130,500 living with HIV.  Nationally, more than half of all new infections occur in communities of color and affect people under the age of 25.



TSUMAMI DISASTER 2004 - SUPPORT  THROUGH CARE
When the devastation hit Southeast Asia in December of 2004, Amoeba immediately responded by uniting with one of the most effective non-profit organizations in the world, CARE.

Within days of the disaster, Amoeba contacted CARE and through donation buckets in our stores and links to the CARE donation web page, we helped to bring in over $15,000, which went directly to a fund helping more than a quarter of a million people who lost their lives and millions more lost their homes.

Southeast Asia is still recovering from the massive tsunami, and CARE is still there supporting those that need them.  In India, they’re rebuilding water systems and working to repair and upgrade schools.  In Indonesia CARE is still providing food and shelter for 350,000 displaced survivors. In Sri Lanka, CARE continues to help villagers make shores safer.  Assistance also continues in Thailand and Somalia where small-business loans will make it possible to reestablish livelihoods.  Families have sturdy temporary shelters to use until permanent ones are constructed.

 

SMALLER ORGANIZATIONS:

  • Sweet Relief - provides financial and medical assistance
  • Rhythm & Blues Foundation
  • Internos - provides musical instruments and lessons to children in Los Angeles who need them
  • Hollygrove - a non-profit that has served nearly 20,000 abused and neglected children in its 125-year history
  • Los Angeles Free Clinic
  • R.A.I.N.N. - organization helping rape and incest victims
  • Hollywood Arts Council
  • Amesty International
  • Gay & Lesbian Task Force
  • American Parkinson's Disease Association
  • Los Angeles Children’s Hospital
  • Five Acres - toys for children during Xmas 2004
  • Gay Pride Los Angeles / Gay Pride San Francisco

DAX PIERSON FUND
Dax Pierson (Amoeba Berkeley buyer and keyboardist for Anticon music collective, Subtle) was left partially paralyzed after a severe freeway accident. A huge thanks to all the Amoeba Angels (our beloved customers and friends) who have contributed money to Dax's Recovery Fund and supported Dax on his courageous journey. A special benefit CD, "Irreplaceable Hand" (featuring tracks by Odd Nosdam, Matmos, Nurse With Wound, A.C. Way, High Vulture, Thomas Carnacki, Galena, irr.app.(ext.), Barely Human Dance theatre, Sleep On It, Moe!Staiano, Petit Mal, & Lucifer Meltdown) is for sale at every Amoeba store, with all proceeds going directly to Dax's recovery.

Dax is now settled in home-sweet-home Berkeley and actively working on music from his fully-equipped home studio. He has a new computer and music software and has been composing beautiful instrumental arrangements! He's been attending mixing sessions with Subtle, and even playing a bit on harmonica. Some of the money that was raised was used to buy him a special wheelchair and a van so he can get around. He’s excited to be back home again. Dax is still working for Amoeba--writing reviews and keeping up with music. Music is the fuel that keeps him going each day!