Spirit West Coast
Encyclopedia
Spirit West Coast is a Christian music festival
that features Christian artists from several different genres. It also features lectures, workshops in tents, kids' shows, petting zoos, and comedians.
Spirit West Coast was founded by five families in 1995. It began in 1997 as a yearly festival in Monterey, California
. Later, an additional festival in Del Mar, California
was added. These two festivals are held every summer. The festivals are members of the Christian Festival Association
.
Many of the most popular Christian acts play concerts for the attendees. These include Michael W. Smith
, Audio Adrenaline
, Newsboys
, Delirious?
, Chris Tomlin
, Tree63
, Jeremy Camp
, Armour Under Fire, Rebecca St. James
, Skillet
, The Kry
, Toby Mac, Jars of Clay
, and many others.
Some of the top Christian speakers and authors give lectures/sermons at Spirit West Coast festivals. Past speakers include Charles Stanley
, Greg Laurie
, Luis Palau
, Tony Campolo
, Frank Peretti, Miles McPherson
, Ron Luce
, and Louie Giglio
.
Compassion International
is one of the focuses of SWC. Compassion has a tent where they encourage people to sponsor hungry and needy children in other countries. SWC keeps track of the number of sponsorships and announces the growing number over their loudspeaker.
The layout of Spirit West Coast consists of a main stage with large screens for those that have to stand or sit far away. In addition, it features side stages (some inside tents), several merchandise tents, and various other tents (e.g. first aid, lost and found, etc.). There are also numerous food vendors on site.
SWC offers camping to those that don't live nearby and to those that don't want to stay in hotels. Buses run from the campgrounds to the main stage, so people don't have to walk too far. These buses generally run until about midnight.
Many church groups attend Spirit West Coast. They pack their youth groups into buses and drive to Monterey or Del Mar. SWC offers a special rate for groups. One group calling themselves the "Traveling Circus" has made particularly visible appearances at the concert every year, starting large dance pits at performances. The group is made of a dozen or so Christian punks, goths and hippies.
These festivals last between 3-4 days. They start around 9am and end around midnight each night. People of all faiths (and no faith) can and do attend. There are invitational messages to repent and trust in Jesus
, presented both by the event staff and the individual musicians, and there are also baptism
s held at the Monterey festival.
Spirit West Coast is run almost entirely by volunteers. Volunteers typically work four or nine hour shifts. Some, namely IT, electrical, construction, kitchen crews, operations, navigators, and a few others, work MANY more hours. For these individuals, SWC is an adventure and family reunion that they look forward to year after year. For these departments, and many others, onsite work often begins a week prior to the festival start date and doesn't end for days after when the last items are packed up and stored for the following year. There is much to be done to convert the Del Mar Fairgrounds into a festival site, and even more to be done to convert the dust bowl of Laguna Seca.
Christian music festival
A Christian music festival is a music festival held by the Christian community, in support of performers of Christian music...
that features Christian artists from several different genres. It also features lectures, workshops in tents, kids' shows, petting zoos, and comedians.
Spirit West Coast was founded by five families in 1995. It began in 1997 as a yearly festival in Monterey, California
Monterey, California
The City of Monterey in Monterey County is located on Monterey Bay along the Pacific coast in Central California. Monterey lies at an elevation of 26 feet above sea level. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 27,810. Monterey is of historical importance because it was the capital of...
. Later, an additional festival in Del Mar, California
Del Mar, California
Del Mar is an upscale beach town in San Diego County, California. The population was 4,161 at the 2010 census, down from 4,389 at the 2000 census. The San Diego County Fair is hosted on the Del Mar Fairgrounds every summer. Del Mar is Spanish for "of the sea" or "by the sea", because it is located...
was added. These two festivals are held every summer. The festivals are members of the Christian Festival Association
Christian Festival Association
The Christian Festival Association was formed in September 2006. The group consists of members representing major Christian music festivals held in the United States. Collectively, this group represents over 1.5 million attendees, and are held between April and December, with most held during the...
.
Many of the most popular Christian acts play concerts for the attendees. These include Michael W. Smith
Michael W. Smith
Michael Whitaker Smith is a Billboard top ten Billboard Hot 100 recording artist and Grammy Award-winning American singer-songwriter, composer, and actor. He is one of the best-selling and most influential artists in Contemporary Christian music. Smith also has achieved a considerable amount of...
, Audio Adrenaline
Audio Adrenaline
Audio Adrenaline was a Christian rock band that formed in the late 1980s at Kentucky Christian University in Grayson, Kentucky. During the band's 17-year existence, they were awarded two Grammy awards, multiple Dove Awards and they released 17 number one singles. They were regular performers at the...
, Newsboys
Newsboys
Newsboys are a Christian pop rock band founded in 1985 in Mooloolaba, Australia. They have released 15 studio albums, six of which have been certified gold...
, Delirious?
Delirious?
Delirious? were an English Christian rock and worship band. For the majority of their career, the lineup featured Martin Smith on vocals and guitar, Stu G on guitar and backing vocals, Jon Thatcher on bass guitar, Tim Jupp on keys and piano, and Stew Smith on drums and percussion...
, Chris Tomlin
Chris Tomlin
Christopher Dwayne "Chris" Tomlin is an American Christian Contemporary Music artist, worship leader, and songwriter from Grand Saline, Texas, United States. He is a former staff member at Austin Stone Community Church and is signed to EMI's sixstepsrecords. Tomlin also leads worship at many...
, Tree63
Tree63
Tree63 was a Contemporary Christian Music band from Durban, South Africa.-History:The band was formed in 1996 and originally, it was unnamed. In 1997, the band had to come up with a name before performing at North Beach, Durban, and came up with "Tree". They added the 63 part of their name in 2000...
, Jeremy Camp
Jeremy Camp
Jeremy Thomas Camp is a contemporary Christian musician from Lafayette, Indiana. Camp has released seven albums, four of them RIAA-certified as Gold and two are live albums, and 17 number-one hit songs...
, Armour Under Fire, Rebecca St. James
Rebecca St. James
Rebecca St. James , is a Christian pop rock singer, songwriter, musician, author, and actor. She began performing in Australia in the late 1980s and released her first full-length studio album in 1991. In 1993 she was signed to the record label ForeFront Records and released her major label debut a...
, Skillet
Skillet (band)
Skillet is an American Christian rock band formed in Memphis, Tennessee in 1996. The band currently consists of husband and wife John and Korey Cooper , along with Jen Ledger and lead guitarist Seth Morrison. The band has released eight albums, two receiving Grammy nominations: Collide and Comatose...
, The Kry
The Kry
The Kry is a Christian rock/worship band from Quebec City, Canada. The band consists of Jean-Luc La Joie Yves La Joie, , Nic Rodriguez , The Lajoie brothers currently both serve on staff at located in Southern California.In addition to their invitational songs,...
, Toby Mac, Jars of Clay
Jars of Clay
Jars of Clay is a Christian rock band from Nashville, Tennessee. They met at Greenville College in Greenville, Illinois.Jars of Clay consists of Dan Haseltine on vocals, Charlie Lowell on piano and keyboards, Stephen Mason on lead guitars and Matthew Odmark on rhythm guitars...
, and many others.
Some of the top Christian speakers and authors give lectures/sermons at Spirit West Coast festivals. Past speakers include Charles Stanley
Charles Stanley
Charles Stanley , is a US preacher, Pastor of First Baptist Church, Atlanta, Georgia.Charles Stanley may also refer to:*Charles H...
, Greg Laurie
Greg Laurie
Greg Laurie serves as the Senior Pastor of Harvest Christian Fellowship in Riverside, California.-Ministry:Laurie, who was born in Long Beach, California, became a Christian under the ministry of Pentecostal evangelist Lonnie Frisbee...
, Luis Palau
Luis Palau
Luis Palau, Jr. is an international Christian evangelist living in the Portland area in Oregon, United States. He was born in Argentina and moved to Portland in his mid-twenties to enroll in a graduate program in Biblical studies....
, Tony Campolo
Tony Campolo
Dr. Anthony "Tony" Campolo is an American pastor, author, sociologist, and public speaker known for challenging evangelical Christians by illustrating how their faith can offer solutions in a world of complexity. With his liberal political and social attitudes, he has been a major proponent for...
, Frank Peretti, Miles McPherson
Miles McPherson
Miles McPherson is the pastor of The Rock Church in San Diego, a motivational speaker, and a former NFL football player.-History:...
, Ron Luce
Ron Luce
Ronald Allen “Ron” Luce is the co-founder and president of Teen Mania Ministries located in Garden Valley, Texas. Together with his wife Katie, Ron founded Teen Mania in 1986 in his van. The ministry has expanded greatly and has become influential within today's Christian youth culture...
, and Louie Giglio
Louie Giglio
Louie Giglio is a pastor , speaker and founder of the Passion Movement.-Biography:Giglio graduated from Georgia State University and earned a Master of Divinity from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth, Texas. Later he went to Grace Theological Seminary to pursue a Doctor of...
.
Compassion International
Compassion International
Compassion International is a Christian child sponsorship organization dedicated to the long-term development of children living in poverty around the world. Compassion International, headquartered in Colorado Springs, functions in 26 countries such as Bolivia, Colombia, Mexico, Haiti, Kenya, and...
is one of the focuses of SWC. Compassion has a tent where they encourage people to sponsor hungry and needy children in other countries. SWC keeps track of the number of sponsorships and announces the growing number over their loudspeaker.
The layout of Spirit West Coast consists of a main stage with large screens for those that have to stand or sit far away. In addition, it features side stages (some inside tents), several merchandise tents, and various other tents (e.g. first aid, lost and found, etc.). There are also numerous food vendors on site.
SWC offers camping to those that don't live nearby and to those that don't want to stay in hotels. Buses run from the campgrounds to the main stage, so people don't have to walk too far. These buses generally run until about midnight.
Many church groups attend Spirit West Coast. They pack their youth groups into buses and drive to Monterey or Del Mar. SWC offers a special rate for groups. One group calling themselves the "Traveling Circus" has made particularly visible appearances at the concert every year, starting large dance pits at performances. The group is made of a dozen or so Christian punks, goths and hippies.
These festivals last between 3-4 days. They start around 9am and end around midnight each night. People of all faiths (and no faith) can and do attend. There are invitational messages to repent and trust in Jesus
Jesus
Jesus of Nazareth , commonly referred to as Jesus Christ or simply as Jesus or Christ, is the central figure of Christianity...
, presented both by the event staff and the individual musicians, and there are also baptism
Baptism
In Christianity, baptism is for the majority the rite of admission , almost invariably with the use of water, into the Christian Church generally and also membership of a particular church tradition...
s held at the Monterey festival.
Spirit West Coast is run almost entirely by volunteers. Volunteers typically work four or nine hour shifts. Some, namely IT, electrical, construction, kitchen crews, operations, navigators, and a few others, work MANY more hours. For these individuals, SWC is an adventure and family reunion that they look forward to year after year. For these departments, and many others, onsite work often begins a week prior to the festival start date and doesn't end for days after when the last items are packed up and stored for the following year. There is much to be done to convert the Del Mar Fairgrounds into a festival site, and even more to be done to convert the dust bowl of Laguna Seca.
External links
- Spirit West Coast website
- Celebration Concerts
- SWCGuide.org Spirit West Coast Guide by attendees
- SWC Del Mar Onsite Intranet Portal
- SWC Monterey Onsite Intranet Portal