FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT www.queenscourier.com NOVEMBER 13, 2014 • The Queens Courier 3 FORES T HI LLS FANS CRO WDFUN DIN G TO BRIN G PEARL JAM TO QUENS BY ERI C JANKIE WICZ ejankiewicz@queenscourier.com @EricJankiewicz Local lovers of ‘90s band Pearl Jam may soon have the opportunity of a lifetime — to see the rockers play a concert in Queens — thanks to some devoted Forest Hills fans. A dedicated group of fans is trying to entice Pearl Jam to play at Forest Hills Stadium with a crowdfunded campaign that aims to raise $100,000. And it looks like the famous quintet, led by vocalist Eddie Vedder, may indeed be on their way to Queens. The group, which is aptly named Pearl Jam Forest Hills, has already raised $20,000 and is getting a lot of attention on social media. Forest Hills Stadium has held many high-profile music shows over the years, including the Talking Heads and The Beatles. The Who is slated to play in 2015. But unlike most of these shows, efforts to raise money to bring in Pearl Jam aren’t backed by any corporate sponsors. “We’re trying to keep it as pure as possible,” said Daniel Sheffer, one of the fans. “I’m not a concert promoter, but I have the tenacity to learn it as I go along. It’s organic.” “We’re going strong. We loved Forest Hills. We love Queens,” said Sheffer, who grew up in Forest Hills listening to Pearl Jam. As part of the crowdfunding campaign, which seeks donations from the public, fans get a seat if they give $80 or more. Those who give $1000 can expect four tickets, plus what the group calls a “mystery bunch of Pearl Jam goodies.” Pearl Jam is known for songs like “Daughter,” “Corduroy” and “I Got Id.” Sheffer hasn’t yet heard from the band about being open to playing in Forest Hills Stadium, but he’s hopeful that if they raise enough money, the band will come. Along with Sheffer’s close friends and family, the crowdfunding group is working hard to spread the word through social media sites and raise more money. They are also contacting local politicians and community advocates, who’d love to see Queens getting concerts like Brooklyn does with the Barclays Center. Sheffer thought of the idea after Danny Clinch/Flickr Creative Commons Pearl Jam he heard that the band Foo Fighters played a crowdfunded set in Richmond, Virginia, in September. “I might not be the best guy for the job, but I’ll give it a thousand percent, ” Sheffer said. “And if they give us a hard ‘no’ that’s cool, too. At least we gave it a shot.” JACKSON HEIGHTS MAN OFFERS ‘MIDNIGHT’ FOOD TOURS BY ANGY ALTAMIR ANO aaltamirano@queenscourier.com @aaltamirano28 For the past three years, one Jackson Heights resident has been showing visitors how delicious his neighborhood is once the sun goes down. Jeff Orlick has been offering, by appointment, tours down Roosevelt Avenue for people from near and far looking to get a taste of the “real New York.” The tour, called the Midnight Street Crawl, is one of three tours Orlick gives throughout the year. It is offered Monday through Thursday and goes from 90th Street to 111th Street. A spot on the tour costs $59, and reservations are required. When he first started the “midnight” crawls, he was able to go from midnight to the early morning, but now, because of a new job, he tends to start the tours around 8 or 9 p.m. “We basically investigate the street nightlife through food,” Orlick said. “We try to engage a community through the food.” On the “midnight” tours, Orlick takes groups of two or more participants to street food vendors offering Ecuadorian, Colombian, Mexican, Dominican and sometimes Peruvian cuisines. “It’s like a jazz show: there’s a script and there’s notes, but we definitely go on tangents and explore,” Orlick said. “People definitely like it, they like how real it is. People say it’s the real New York.” Along with the “midnight” crawl, Orlick also offers a “Tastes of the World” tour and a “Queens Fiesta Crawl.” Both of these events happen during the day and are based on reservations. These tours tend to change depending on where the participants are from, said Orlick. On Nov. 22 from 2 to 5 p.m. Orlick will host the third annual Momo Crawl, where restaurants and street vendors who sell the steamed dumpling will offer them for $1 each. “In Jackson Heights, in Queens, people are proud of their cultures,” Orlick said. For more information or to book a tour, visit www.vayable.com/users/ tastes or www.iwantmorefood.com. Photo by Donny Tsang / Courtesy of Jeff Orlick Jackson Heights resident Jeff Orlick takes visitors on a “midnight” street food tour down Roosevelt Avenue.
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