News Release

20 years of blues, community and fighting hunger 

Bring your mail to 20th Safeway Waterfront Blues Festival for commemorative postmark

PORTLAND, Ore. (June 19, 2007) —  Bring your letters, cards and postcards to the Safeway Waterfront Blues Festival, presented by First Tech Credit Union, and mail them off with a special postmark authorized by the Postal Service just for this year’s festival. The postmark, available on Friday, July 6, and Saturday, July 7, from noon to 4 p.m., at Tom McCall Waterfront Park, will commemorate the festival’s 20 years of blues, community and fighting hunger.

“This landmark anniversary provides a wonderful opportunity for the Portland Post Office to commemorate the festival’s two decades of reaching out to our community,” Portland Postmaster Shawneen Betha said. 

“Taking the time to send a card or letter to your friends or family from the festival will help promote awareness, and the postmark itself is a true work of art that will be treasured as a memento and souvenir for years to come,” Betha added.

According to United States Postal Service officials, postal workers may only postmark items bearing First-Class® postage stamps.

According to United States Postal Service officials, postal workers may apply the postmark to any item bearing first-class postage stamps.

Portland artist Gary Houston designed the postmark, featuring a stylized blues harmonica. Houston is well-known for creating the Safeway Waterfront Blues Festival’s official poster for the past four years, including this year’s design, featuring blues piano legend Fats Waller. Houston is known nationally for his artwork for Wilco, Ben Harper, Los Lobos and others.

Blues fans can buy cards featuring Houston’s artwork at the festival to send to friends and loved ones around the world. Proceeds from card sales will benefit Oregon Food Bank’s work to eliminate hunger and its root causes … because no one should be hungry.

You’ll find the temporary, on-site Post Office near the Safeway Waterfront Blues Festival merchandise store. Postal workers will apply the postmark and sell postage stamps between noon and 4 p.m. on Friday, July 6, and Saturday, July 7.

About Oregon Food Bank: Oregon Food Bank is a nonprofit, charitable organization. It is the hub of the Oregon Food Bank Network, a statewide network of 20 regional food banks and 884 hunger-relief agencies serving Oregon and Clark County, Wash. Last year, OFB distributed more than 34.3-million pounds of food.

About festival sponsors. The 2007 Safeway Waterfront Blues Festival is presented by First Tech Credit Union. Major sponsors are iQ Credit Union, The Oregonian A&E, KINK.fm, Good Neighbor Pharmacy, PacificSource Health Plans, FedEx Freight, DaimlerChrysler Truck Financial, Miller Brewing, Delta Music Experience and Land Rover.

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