2019 Montana Folk Festival
Donation protected
The 2019 Montana Folk Festival in Butte is behind us but like an earthquake the aftershocks continue to reverberate throughout the region.
Festival presenters have heard loud and clear from attendees, volunteers, performers and artists alike – the event was a spectacular success.
"The festival was another record year on every metric we use to evaluate it," said George Everett, Festival Director. "Thanks to the feedback we receive and act on the festival just keeps getting better-- it was the best and most beautiful Montana Folk Festival we have ever produced," added Everett.
"Nearly two dozen wonderful performers graced the six stages over the weekend. The weather, at times unsettled, was kind to us and allowed the festival to roll on with only a few minor interruptions -- it was spectacular and at times; Butte’s skies were magical in the evenings."
Much of the credit for the smooth operation of the event this year goes to the staff and volunteers that pitched in, many long-time volunteers who have honed their skills over the past dozen years and BSB crews that helped keep the festival humming in the background.
"Thanks to the coordinated efforts of nearly 900 volunteers, we were able to properly greet and entertain thousands of guests this past weekend, including friends and family from throughout the world," said Everett.
One of the brightest highlights was the live broadcast from the Original Stage on Friday and Saturday that was heard by thousands of Montanans and throughout Eastern Washington on Spokane Public Radio on Saturday night. Hosts for the show included Michael Marsolek and crew of Montana Public Radio.
"This year we experienced overflow crowds at all venues on Friday and Saturday. The parking lots and county parks were full as was every possible parking spot on the Hill, While the crowds were lighter in comparison on Sunday there was still strong attendance at all of the venues on Sunday with good crowds at the smaller stages," said George Everett.
In fact on all points -- the ridership on busses on the site, amount of garbage taken off the site that is measured at the landfill, amount of ice used, food sales and parking patterns that had cars in parking lots and every empty space on the Hill on Saturday -- all indicators are that the festival continues to grow to the capacity of the present site design.
Contributions to the festival ambassadors with buckets are still coming in, but so far have tallied about $130,000. That figure may well move upwards as post-festival contributions take the total higher.
Mainstreet Uptown Butte is a 501 (c) (3) nonprofit and these after-the-festival contributions are welcome and strongly encouraged.
If anyone enjoyed the festival and would like to send a contribution after the festival to help pay present and future bills, they can send a tax-deductible contribution to Mainstreet Uptown Butte, P.O. Box 696, Butte, MT 59703 or they can use Paypal Giving Fund for certified charities as some are doing now by going to paypal.com/us/fundraiser/charity/1876197.
Once again, the festival met its goal to return Uptown streets to normal by Monday morning. The Operations crew worked quickly and efficiently with the tear down of the festival, known as The Strike. The strike to tear down the site started at the end of the last note on Sunday as crews fanned out to fold and stack chairs and take down barricades.
The tents are gone and the stages have been put away until next year. Butte is back to normal while still buzzing from the excitement of the 2019 Montana Folk Festival.
The festival drew attendees from throughout the region and exceeded the expectations of 150,000 attendees over the three days of the event. The attendance was estimated at about 170,000 this year -- 40,000 on Friday, 95,000 on Saturday and 35,000 on Sunday.
An on-site survey of visitors resulted in hundreds of surveys that will yield useful details about visitor behavior in Butte and the area. Early results indicate that visitors reported coming from many foreign locations as well as from many states across the USA.
Meanwhile, for anyone who missed it, images and videos of the festival are coming in and will be increasingly available over the next few weeks at the festival Facebook page -- www.facebook.com/mtfolkfest.
The most frequent question so far has been to ask for the dates of next year’s event.
Festival planning for 2020 will begin soon, with the hope that long-time sponsors will renew their support early in the coming year including the continued critical support of major partner Butte Silver Bow County.
The main task for the next few weeks will be to review comments and suggestions and these are encouraged and welcomed to improve the organization and effectiveness for the 10th Montana Folk Festival in 2020. When will that happen? Always the second weekend in July, the 10th Montana Folk Festival and the 13th festival is set in Butte July 10-12, 2020.
For details as they develop, visit www.montanafolkfestival.com or on Facebook at www.facebook.com/mtfolkfest.
Festival presenters have heard loud and clear from attendees, volunteers, performers and artists alike – the event was a spectacular success.
"The festival was another record year on every metric we use to evaluate it," said George Everett, Festival Director. "Thanks to the feedback we receive and act on the festival just keeps getting better-- it was the best and most beautiful Montana Folk Festival we have ever produced," added Everett.
"Nearly two dozen wonderful performers graced the six stages over the weekend. The weather, at times unsettled, was kind to us and allowed the festival to roll on with only a few minor interruptions -- it was spectacular and at times; Butte’s skies were magical in the evenings."
Much of the credit for the smooth operation of the event this year goes to the staff and volunteers that pitched in, many long-time volunteers who have honed their skills over the past dozen years and BSB crews that helped keep the festival humming in the background.
"Thanks to the coordinated efforts of nearly 900 volunteers, we were able to properly greet and entertain thousands of guests this past weekend, including friends and family from throughout the world," said Everett.
One of the brightest highlights was the live broadcast from the Original Stage on Friday and Saturday that was heard by thousands of Montanans and throughout Eastern Washington on Spokane Public Radio on Saturday night. Hosts for the show included Michael Marsolek and crew of Montana Public Radio.
"This year we experienced overflow crowds at all venues on Friday and Saturday. The parking lots and county parks were full as was every possible parking spot on the Hill, While the crowds were lighter in comparison on Sunday there was still strong attendance at all of the venues on Sunday with good crowds at the smaller stages," said George Everett.
In fact on all points -- the ridership on busses on the site, amount of garbage taken off the site that is measured at the landfill, amount of ice used, food sales and parking patterns that had cars in parking lots and every empty space on the Hill on Saturday -- all indicators are that the festival continues to grow to the capacity of the present site design.
Contributions to the festival ambassadors with buckets are still coming in, but so far have tallied about $130,000. That figure may well move upwards as post-festival contributions take the total higher.
Mainstreet Uptown Butte is a 501 (c) (3) nonprofit and these after-the-festival contributions are welcome and strongly encouraged.
If anyone enjoyed the festival and would like to send a contribution after the festival to help pay present and future bills, they can send a tax-deductible contribution to Mainstreet Uptown Butte, P.O. Box 696, Butte, MT 59703 or they can use Paypal Giving Fund for certified charities as some are doing now by going to paypal.com/us/fundraiser/charity/1876197.
Once again, the festival met its goal to return Uptown streets to normal by Monday morning. The Operations crew worked quickly and efficiently with the tear down of the festival, known as The Strike. The strike to tear down the site started at the end of the last note on Sunday as crews fanned out to fold and stack chairs and take down barricades.
The tents are gone and the stages have been put away until next year. Butte is back to normal while still buzzing from the excitement of the 2019 Montana Folk Festival.
The festival drew attendees from throughout the region and exceeded the expectations of 150,000 attendees over the three days of the event. The attendance was estimated at about 170,000 this year -- 40,000 on Friday, 95,000 on Saturday and 35,000 on Sunday.
An on-site survey of visitors resulted in hundreds of surveys that will yield useful details about visitor behavior in Butte and the area. Early results indicate that visitors reported coming from many foreign locations as well as from many states across the USA.
Meanwhile, for anyone who missed it, images and videos of the festival are coming in and will be increasingly available over the next few weeks at the festival Facebook page -- www.facebook.com/mtfolkfest.
The most frequent question so far has been to ask for the dates of next year’s event.
Festival planning for 2020 will begin soon, with the hope that long-time sponsors will renew their support early in the coming year including the continued critical support of major partner Butte Silver Bow County.
The main task for the next few weeks will be to review comments and suggestions and these are encouraged and welcomed to improve the organization and effectiveness for the 10th Montana Folk Festival in 2020. When will that happen? Always the second weekend in July, the 10th Montana Folk Festival and the 13th festival is set in Butte July 10-12, 2020.
For details as they develop, visit www.montanafolkfestival.com or on Facebook at www.facebook.com/mtfolkfest.
Organizer
George Everett
Organizer
Butte, MT
