A lifelong activist for peace and personal empowerment, Wavy Gravy has lived his whole life with pure 1960s idealism.
With his wife, Gravy runs a circus and performing arts camp that they’ve had for 30 years.
At 71, he continues to have a positive outlook on life and he’s been called the perfect entertainer. The man who for thousands will always be the face of Woodstock even has a Ben and Jerry’s ice cream flavor named after him.
Gravy talks to Growing Bolder about his passions for life and how he’s made a difference in the lives of others.
For the past several years, Gravy has lived at the Berkeley Hog Farm commune that he refers to as the “hippie Hyannisport.” He says intergenerational “intentional communities” are popping up all over the country as people look for a way to reconnect with each other.
He’s also passionate about Seva, the nonprofit organization he co-founded in 1978. Its goal is to alleviate suffering caused by disease and poverty in communities around the world. Among its missions is to help prevent blindess and restore vision to the people of India, Nepal, Tibet, Cambodia, Bangladesh, Egypt, Tanzania and Guatemala. Seva also sponsors outreach programs to assist Native Americans in areas of health and welness and cultural preservation.
Plus, find out why he thinks the children of the ’60s, who he says have spent the last several decades chasing “stuff,” are now rediscovering the joys of volunteerism and changing the world all over again.
