The first annual Sustainable West Seattle

Solar energy proved its power Sunday as it helped energize a large crowd at the First Annual Sustainable West Seattle Festival.

The festival boasted 18 booths of nearly 50 organizations and businesses promoting environmental sensitivity as well as a stage featuring speakers. Speakers included Sustainable Ballard's Vic Opperman, and neighborhood consultant, Jim Diers, who authored "Neighbor Power: Building Seattle the Community Way."

All were squeezed into the 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. timeframe, and clustered by Wells Fargo Bank at the Alaska Junction across the street from the farmers market.

Snowflake the polar bear was getting hugs from kids. Made of paper and wire large enough to hide two humans inside, Snowflake represented the Backbone Campaign's "Procession for the Future," a menagerie of global-warming related eye-catching floats set to parade outside the Democratic and Republican campaign halls.

Dorothy Bosteder was on the fair coordinating council. She seemed delighted with the turnout.

"This worked out great," she said, clasping a pi–ata-sized bee on a tall pole. "It's a beautiful day, and amazing so many turned up for the first year. The event capitalized on the fruit market (location.) Many here are ready to meet over the reality of the message. There are so many at the table to discuss sustainability."

Explorer West history and music teacher, Ben Wheeler, wrote some of the curriculum on sustainability with the nonprofit, Facing the Future, which is introduced to Seattle area students attending kindergarten through high school. He helped man the Explorer West booth with West Seattle High School student volunteers as well as his students. "Those my age made the mess, as I see it, and it's up to these kids to enter the green economy and turn things around."

Explorer West is an independent, private middle school.

Explorer student Tom Jones is learning classical guitar on what he calls "a very unsustainable" guitar.

"Most guitars are built with slow-growth wood and use lab-produced glues, nylon for strings, and lacquer finish." Jones said he is studying new ways to build guitars, and that some have experimented with recycled yogurt containers and fast-growth woods. "The problem is the neck of the guitar," he said. It needs to be strong and slow-growth wood has more knots and is sturdier." Jones is working on a breakthrough.

Renae Gaines who heads a drug and alcohol prevention initiative at Madison School volunteered at the fair's hospitality booth. "I want to give back to the community," she said in a line of 15 people waiting to get issued their "undrivers license" which promotes walking and pedal power over cars. Added Gaines with a bit of embarrassment, "Instead of driving right across the street from where I live to the grocery store I'm going to walk."

Nancy Ross volunteers at WestSide Baby.

"We collect toys, clothes, and diapers for needy kids up to age 12,' she said. WestSide Baby deals with 80 area social service agencies, including the White Center Food Bank, Southwest Youth and Family Services, and Neighborhood House.

"I go diving in the bins at Good Will downtown to buy clothes by the pound. The resale shop on California Avenue, 'Again and A Gain' gives us leftovers," Ross said, adding with a grin, "So some are getting clothes again and again, again."

Steve Shay may be contacted at steves@robinsonnews.com