50th Regina Folk Festival celebrates inclusion after rain, sunshine, and lots of music

The 50th Anniversary of the Regina Folk Festival brought music, dancing, children singing, and instruments galore to Victoria Park from August 9 to 11. 

"It really feels like a touching tribute to 50 years of volunteers and community," Sandra Butel said. "I'm feeling it more right now than I ever have." 

Butel is the CEO of the Regina Folk Festival. This year, she said she hopes everyone felt as though they belonged.

"Folk Festival is a culture and it's a group of people and that attitude and that generosity has spread everywhere," she said. "It might have taken 50 years for us to get to where everyone's welcome but I feel like we're there." 

 

One way they were working this year to be inclusive is through pronoun pins. The pins let other people know what pronouns a person prefers. The idea started with a board member and now the pins were all around, she said. 

"[We] just try to make it seem normal because it is normal," Butel said. "Like a very gentle awareness."

Double concerts: Garth Brooks at Mosaic, Regina Folk Fest downtown

Even though the Garth Brooks concert was about 13 blocks away, Butel said "it was like they weren't there at all." 

The Regina Folk Festival's show on Saturday night reportedly had a high turnout. Butel said people were finding new places to sit as the usual spots near the stage were completely packed. 

"There were so many of them, so a really fantastic crowd," she said. "Everything went off yesterday without a hitch. It was very smooth and the music was wonderful and everybody was happy."

CBC Saskatchewan Photo Wall 

CBC Saskatchewan had a photo wall through the communications team and volunteers. Many people stopped by to meet Colter Wall and Ruth B. 

To see the photographs and find yours, go the the photo album on the CBC Saskatchewan Facebook Page.

Volunteer quilt bringing back 'a lot of great memories'

To mark the 50th anniversary of the Regina Folk Festival in her own way, Heather Beauchamp turned her volunteering t-shirts into a homemade quilt and brought it to the festival. 

Beauchamp has been volunteering for around 19 years, ever since she first came to the festival while in high school. She continued volunteering after moving to Winnipeg for school and now is back in the province.  She said there's almost two many memories that stand out. 

"It's just a kind of a novelty," she said of her first folk festival. "Just kind of caught the bug with the excitement and the fabulous energy that the folk festival has."

"It seems like every year there's a new group or a new workshop that ends up being my favourite," she said. "It's just an amazing experience every year."

While living with her sister, Beauchamp and her had a large pile of their volunteer t-shirts. They started pulling them out and cutting them for a quilt but "life happens," Beauchamp said, and the project was put away for another day. 

Ten years, four moves, and more later, Beauchamp thought about the 50th anniversary and decided "if any time I'm going to make the time to finish this blanket it's going to be for the 50th," she said. 

Beauchamp finished the quilt and brought it for the festival. The reaction was quick with people reminiscing, she said. 

"Everybody was just kind of sitting around the tables and and you know discussing the designs of the shirts and who played and it brought back a lot of great memories for everybody," she said. 

Just because she brought the quilt to the festival doesn't mean it's done, Beauchamp said. She plans to continue volunteering and adding to the quilt each year with the new designs. 

"It's the energy, it's seeing the friends." she said of the festival. "And then meeting the artists are amazing and getting to be backstage—it kind of reconnects as a family."

"Sitting in the park just at the entrance here—just people are in such a great mood and a great space this weekend in the park and the sun is shining," Beauchamp said. "It's a highlight of my summer every year."