Seattle Post-Intelligencer 01/30/2002
LaBounty makes radio pitch to save old-growth forests
By Clare Farnsworth
Coming soon to a radio station near you … Matt LaBounty extolling the virtues of preserving old-growth forests.
What else would you expect from the Seahawks’ part-time defensive end and full-time environmental advocate, who has been dubbed “Tree Hugger” by his teammates?
LaBounty will be featured in a 60-second spot for the Pacific Crest Biodiversity Project that begins airing today on KMTT-FM.
The Seattle-based, non-profit organization got the idea for using LaBounty when Michael Shank, Pacific Crest membership coordinator, saw the headline “Tree Hugger Returns” in the Post-Intelligencer when LaBounty re-signed with the Seahawks in November.
“This wouldn’t have happened without that headline,” said Shank, who also wrote the words that LaBounty delivers. “We had no idea Matt would be such a good fit to deliver our message until we read about him in the P-I.”
The headline led to an inquiry, which led to LaBounty doing the radio spot.
“You might be wondering how I keep my arms so big during the off-season,” LaBounty says in the public service announcement. “Truth is, I’ve been using my mother’s secret recipe for many years. It’s called the Tree-Huggers’ Delight.
“Combine the following: One Pacific Northwest forest; one large old-growth tree; two arms; and one heaping dose of love for the environment. Mix together for one hour. Let ingredients sit until Tree-Huggers’ Delight jells, and then share with friends.”
LaBounty also invites listeners to join him and others from Pacific Crest in planting trees this summer. For additional information, log on to protectandrestore.org.
LaBounty, who played at the University of Oregon, was with the Seahawks from 1996-2000. He returned in November, sporting a full beard and the same XXL social consciousness.
“A lot of guys think I’m a radical environmentalist,” LaBounty said at the time.
His latest pitch for Pacific Crest will only solidify that perception.