Downtown Huntington Beach isn't all bros and riots—the blog Main & PCH focuses on the positive in Surf City. Founding editor Lauren Lloyd covers the food, lifestyle and creative makers of the city's downtown and Huntington Beach in general. But this past month, Main & PCH went beyond promotional reporting and sunny photographs by pairing up with some of the most badass dudes in town: the men behind Honorable Recharge.
It's a new nonprofit with a mission to build camaraderie and a safe haven for veterans while teaching outsiders that PTSD does not make someone a crazy person. The group, most of whom live in the beachside city, is still small, but it has already raised money for veterans during this year's Musink.
The two groups met when Main & PCH thought up the “Interpretation Tee.” It wanted to call on a local artist to redesign its logo for a T-shirt, then give money from the sale of the first 50 to the artist's charity of choice. Hek from the Tattoo Gallery was the blog's first choice. “Hek has a big heart and a big following, and we love his work,” Lloyd says. “He is constantly lending his creative chops to charitable causes, so we figured he'd be stoked to join forces with us.”
Hek frequently works with Johnny's Saloon, the punk-rock bar where veterans are famously treated like kings, making Honorable Recharge his obvious choice. “Huntington Beach is home to more than 12,500 veterans,” Lloyd notes. “Most neighboring cities house less than half of that amount.” Lloyd mentions that both of her grandfathers were veterans, “so the cause hits home.”
“I've never seen [any city] as active in helping to give back to veterans as HB,” adds Robbie Clarke, a founder of Honorable Recharge. He promises that all of the funds from the T-shirt sale will go toward promotional items such as pamphlets, posters and shirts, which will hopefully alert more veterans to the group.
Buy Hek's special design at mainandpch.com, with free shipping for the first 50 sales. Then go buy yourself a drink at Johnny's. Hell, if you wear the shirt, someone else might buy you a drink, too!
Follow me on Instagram: @lp_hastings.
