Everybody wants to be a pirate.

Especially when there’s booty-shakin’ music and cake involved.

So don your best eye patch and do-rag, matey, and man the decks for “YarrFEST.”

That’s the word from the South Whidbey Youth Leadership Council who are the captains of YarrFEST, a pirate-themed celebration featuring young bands from around the Puget Sound area.

The ship of festivities will get underway at 7 p.m. Friday, June 15 outside at Bayview Hall in Langley.

The evening will feature performances by the bands Chicago Typewriter from Whidbey Island, the Grizzle Grazzle Trashcan Band from Olympia and Ruxton Towers from Bremerton, with other special guests filling out the bill.

The event benefits South Whidbey Relay for Life and the American Cancer Society.

One recent afternoon at their regular meeting place — the Walk-In Closet in Langley — the organizers explained how they came up with the pirate theme for the event.

“Everybody wants to be a pirate, so we figured we would fulfill people’s lifelong dreams,” said Lauren Stelling.

“Pirates represent the ultimate freedom of self-expression,” said Alexis LeDuc.

“Pirates don’t care what anyone thinks,” added Liana Cave.

The choice of bands was crucial to the council. They said that they wanted to choose bands that would appeal to local teenagers.

Stelling said that Ruxton Towers are particularly popular with island teenagers and have played on the island before, most recently at Island Coffee House in Langley.

“It’s inspiring to see them play because you see young people doing what they love,” Stelling said.

And that is part of what the South Whidbey Youth Leadership Council is all about.

The council is currently manned with about a half dozen teenagers from the South End.

It was formed under the umbrella organization of the South Whidbey Youth Connection, a grassroots agency that provides advocacy for youths age 12 through 18 on South Whidbey. Their mission is to prepare youth by helping them develop leadership skills while giving them the chance to design and organize innovative programs that are attractive to their peers.

It also means giving teens a safe place to socialize in a drug-free environment while working together toward a common purpose that benefits the community.

Council members said that almost 100 people participated in their events just last month alone. The program attracts dedicated, creative young people who have a desire to create events like YarrFest that are not only beneficial to the community, but fun, too.

The council recently published a “zine” entitled “The Edge.”

It is an amalgam of art, photos, poems, essays, recipes and interviews put together by teens on the council and in the community. A quote that lines one page of graphics in the zine reads, “Let life be a bowl of melted ice cream.”

But more than just striving for that humorous sweet bowl of fun, it is apparent that these teens are actively taking part in their own development as movers and shakers in the community.

“It’s a really rewarding experience to be doing it yourself and not have everything filtered by an advisor and change the ideas,” Cave said.

“The youth population seems to share similar interests and ideas and we are more likely to listen to them and to comprehend their thinking so they’ll want to come to the events,” she added.

Council members said their volunteer work has also strengthened their bonds with others in the community.

“You get experience working with other people and you get to meet a lot of new people,” LeDuc added.

“It brings good leadership skills because we are made to deal with calling people and talking to adults, like booking Bayview Hall. It just helps to improve our communication with the community,” Stelling said.

When it comes to YarrFEST, though, each of the council members said they hoped to come away with something different.

“A box of memories,” said Stelling.

“Sweet new dance moves,” said Cave.

“Cake!” LeDuc said.

YarrFEST tickets are $3 with a costume, $6 without. The ticket price includes a souvenir button and a spot on the Pirate Cake Walk. The event is drug and alcohol free and is open to all ages.