Editor:
Canmore, you are amazing. This was my first year as artisitic director of the Canmore Folk Music Festival.
Although I have been with the festival for five years previous, I needed to be immersed even deeper into the minute logistics and the connections/relationships it takes to put on an event the size of the Canmore Folk Festival.
It truly felt like the community stepped up to help in so many different ways. The support was (is) incredible – from the mayor and Town staff, to the school board, to the senior’s centre, to the Rotary Club and on and on.
Eighty per cent of our 500 volunteers are local. The bulk of our sponsorship is local – that is local businesses helping us financially or with donations in kind. Without the community of Canmore we could not put this event on. We do get help from people outside our community too and we need them and thank them, but I was amazed at the number of locals stopping me to ask if they could help with whatever was needed.
Many of the volunteers from outside our community come because they love music, but also because Canmore is such a gracious, welcoming place. Even those of you Canmorons (or is it Canmorites?) who aren’t music fans and find the whole weekend busy with people looking for parking, creating line-ups in the shops or generally making a lot of noise still smile and say hello to our visitors on the trails and in our streets.
This festival is ours Canmore. Thank you for all the support, all the volunteering, all the sponsorship, all the listening, dancing and feedback.
I am already thinking about our 35th year. There are some things to learn from this year and some things we need to tweak, but I am so proud to be part of the Canmore Folk Festival team and this community. Thank you.
Sue Panning,
Artistic Director,
Canmore Folk Music Festival
