WAKE UP WEEKEND 2012–JANUARY 19-21, GRAND RAPIDS, MI
Our annual grassroots celebration of animal-friendly food, art, education, and advocacy brought to you by extraVEGANza!, Calvin College, Calvin Center for Christian Scholarship, Humane Society of Grand Valley State University, Our Kitchen Table, Square Inch Community, Brick Road Pizza, and Students for Compassionate Living.

All events are free and open to the public (excluding the optional vegan buffet on Saturday morning ($12.00) and the Adoption Benefit Show on Saturday evening (suggested donation is $6.00). Donations to defray costs are cheerfully accepted. Questions? Write to wakeupweekend@gmail.com.

THURSDAY, JANUARY 19
7:30 pm—Wayne Pacelle, President and CEO, Humane Society of the United States
“The Bond: Our Kinship with Animals, Our Call to Defend Them”
Calvin College Chapel, 1835 Knollcrest Circle SE, Grand Rapids
A reception and book signing follow the talk. Click here for more information on Wayne Pacelle, The Humane Society of the United States, and The Bond.

FRIDAY, JANUARY 20
3:30 pm—Bryant Terry, 5th Annual Animals and the Kingdom of God Lecturer
“Out of the Factory, Into the Field: Cooking as Inspiration for Liberation”
Covenant Fine Arts Center Recital Hall, 1795 Knollcrest Circle SE, Grand Rapids
A reception and book signing follow the lecture/cooking demo. Click here for further details on The Animals and the Kingdom of God Lecture Series, Bryant’s talk, and his hot-off-the-press new book, The Inspired Vegan, which will debut here at Wake Up Weekend.

6:00 pm–“Compassionate Comestibles” Vegan Potluck*
Commons Annex Lecture Hall, Calvin College
Hosted by CCCS “Eating as an Act of Justice” Workshop and Square Inch Community.
At an event where omnivores, vegetarians, and vegans are coming together in fellowship, a vegan bill of fare insures that everyone can enjoy what’s on the menu! What’s your favorite vegan recipe? Bring a dish to share and find out where others come down on this appetizing question! Need a few ideas? The Ready Table, Vegan Yum Yum, Post Punk Kitchen, and ChooseVeg never disappoint. *Please help us to reduce our ecological footprint by bringing your own washable or recyclable dinnerware and perhaps an extra setting or two for our out-of-town guests and last-minute participants.

SATURDAY, JANUARY 21
10:00 am–Panel Discussion:”Neighborhood Urban Growing”
Brick Road Pizza Company, 1017 Wealthy Street, Grand Rapids
Lisa Oliver King (Our Kitchen Table), Jill Myer (Greater Grand Rapids Food Systems Council), and special guest Bryant Terry discuss how to make our urban neighborhoods greener, more nourishing, and more just places to eat and to live. Bryant will be signing copies of The Inspired Vegan and his other books, so if you have to miss his cooking demo on Friday, here’s a second chance to get the newest vegan cookbook on the planet straight from the source.

11:00 am–Inspired Vegan Brunch
Brick Road Pizza Company, 1017 Wealthy Street, Grand Rapids
A vegan buffet of Brick Road brunch favorites supplemented with some custom selections from Bryant Terry’s hot-off-the-press cookbook, The Inspired Vegan. All you can eat for $12.00 (kids half price!).

1:30 pm–Panel Discussion: “Spiritual Food: Eating and the Church”
106 Gallery and Studio, 106 South Division, Grand Rapids
Join Steve De Ruiter, Leonard J. Vander Zee, and Michelle Loyd-Paige for a community discussion on the prospects and pitfalls that intensified discussion of the theological and moral importance of greener diets might have for hospitality, fellowship, and community service in the church.

3:00 pm—Nathan Runkle, Founder and Executive Director, Mercy For Animals
“Inspiring Compassion: Putting our Ethics on the Table”
106 Gallery and Studio, 106 South Division, Grand Rapids
Learn from the best about how our current food system affects the interests of our fellow non-human creatures, and how our food choices can become powerful tools for cultivating the virtues of compassion, mercy, and good stewardship. Click here to learn more about Nathan Runkle and Mercy For Animals.

6:00 pm–Opening Reception: KINSHIP-An Art Exhibition of and for Animals Like Us
Curated by GVSU Art and Design Professor Brett Colley, KINSHIP features the works of 15 concerned, compassionate artists, including Sue Coe, Jenny Pope, Adam Wolpa, Mike Guyette, Christina Mrozik, Shanna Shearer, Emily Gray Koehler, Kirsten Strom, Brett Colley, Ryan Hill, Tim Oliphant, Margaret Reed, Jenny Schneider, Richard Gibson and Linsey Tankersley.

6:30 pm–Sixth Annual Vegan Chili Cookoff
106 Gallery and Studio, 106 South Division, Grand Rapids
Want to go for the glory in the most competitive vegan chili cook-off in the land? Please send an e-mail to wakeupweekend@gmail.com at your earliest convenience to register your signature chili for the chance to earn the ultimate bragging rights plus terrific prize packages from the good folks at Alternative Baking Company, Field Roast, and Tofurky. In a pinch, you slackers out there can still register a chili on the day of the event, but it will greatly help our planning to know your intentions in advance. Please plan to have your chili on site and ready to eat by 6:00 pm.

8:30 pm–Adoption Benefit Show
Featuring Damned Dogs, Radiator Hospital, and Royl Space
106 Gallery and Studio, 106 South Division, Grand Rapids
Your $6.00 suggested donation gets you three amazing Michigan musical acts for one great cause: our goal is to raise $420 for Sasha Farm to continue our support of Moose, a rescued former veal calf whose room and board we sponsored last year.

Questions? Need more information? Drop a line to wakeupweekend@gmail.com! See you at Wake Up Weekend 2011!