Folk festival seeks billets, volunteers
It’s still full folk ahead for this festival.
The organizers of Live From the Rock Folk Festival (LFTR) are calling on residents of Red Rock, Nipigon, and nearby communities to act as billets for festival musicians.
Organizers are also seeking more volunteers for the festival itself.
Elly Tose, artistic director of LFTR, told Dougall Media things are well on-track for the festival this August.
“There’s always little details that you forget about and then go, ‘oh yeah, I’ve got to do that’ and sometimes you have to wait on people to respond and stuff but I think we’re all doing pretty well,” she said.
When it comes to accommodations for artists, Tose said that most of the artists attending the festival typically camp at Pull-a-Log Park to remain in the festival atmosphere.
She acknowledged, however, that the campground experience isn’t something everyone is interested in.
“We always have a few musicians who – (whether it’s due to) age or proclivity – aren’t campers. In the early years, we used to be able to get hotel rooms in Nipigon but, with all of the highway construction, they're always booked up so we’ve had to look for other opportunities,” she said.
Tose said she has two groups of three musicians who still need billets.
“I’ve even talked to a few people about the possibility of billeting out of Nipigon. One of the groups of three have a vehicle so they could go to Nipigon if we needed them to – the other group is flying in so they would need to be in Red Rock so they can walk to the billet.
"We don’t expect people to cook for the musicians or entertain them, it’s just providing space for them to sleep,” she said.
Tose also addressed the need for more volunteers.
“We’re sort of bare bones. We’ve got people in every position that we need but it doesn’t hurt to pad things in case people don’t show up – and we do have some positions where there are certain skills or certain personalities which suit better.
“Security is one area where we need people and that just has to be people who are OK with, say, approaching people and talking to them, feeling comfortable that they can say, ‘I’m sorry you can’t smoke here, you have to go out to the road’ or ‘Could I check your wrist-band?’ That kind of thing,” she said.
Those who do decide to volunteer will be given a free festival T-shirt, in addition to a free weekend pass for volunteering anywhere from 12 to 15 hours. People who choose to billet are considered volunteers.
Tose said their membership and volunteer coordinator, Cathy Morgan, always makes an effort to schedule volunteers in a way that still allows them to enjoy the festival.
She also said there are various areas that put volunteers right near the action.
“Most of our volunteer locations, you might be at a stage where you’re helping out, you might be selling raffle tickets but you can do that from the stage areas so you can still hear the music . . . You’re still going to get to enjoy the festival,” she said.
Tose highlighted the sense of community fostered by festival-goers, artists, and volunteers alike.
“You get to meet some new people. One of the things that everybody talks about at Red Rock is the community atmosphere that gets created. Everybody’s helping everybody and people make lifelong friends coming to this festival.
“Festivals don’t happen in isolation. We need the whole community to be onboard and support it. We’re doing it for the community, for the people on the north shore. It’s nice to have some festivals that are outside of Thunder Bay so that you don’t always have to go to Thunder Bay to get the live experience.
“A lot of smaller festivals are having a tough time – all festivals are, all live music and the arts are struggling right now. What I see happening is there are really big festivals that bring in a lot of fun and really big names but that, to me, takes away from the diversity of music we have across Canada – when we’re not seeing emerging artists, we’re not seeing cultural diversity necessarily, we’re not seeing ourselves in our own community festivals
"That’s what little festivals do – they help local people and emerging artists at any age get their foot in the door, get some experience, and then they can apply to bigger festivals,” she said.
For those interested in providing a billet for incoming artists, please send an inquiry to Tose via email at lftrartistic@gmail.com.
For volunteering at the festival itself, fill out the volunteer form online at livefromtherockfolkfestival.com.
Austin Campbell, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, SNnewswatch.com
