There’s nothing quite like listening to folk music outside on a warm summer night. Unless of course you’re enjoying it in Kingsville with thousands of other people at the Kingsville Folk Music Festival! Since it’s the only folk music festival west of London, it draws in all kinds of people from surrounding towns to enjoy world-class Canadian folk, acoustic and world music. The festival’s main goal is to encourage and promote performers from around the world (with a special emphasis on Canadian talent of course) and to give their audiences a chance to experience this incredibly diverse genre of music, musical instruments and the artists who play them.
With local artisans setting up shop, local beer and wine being served, hands on activities and workshops to explore, a fun kids area and a great selection of eats in the food village, there’s more than just tunes to take in at this festival. Their 2018 performer lineup is full of incredible Canada talent and some local Windsor artists you might recognize too! You can even grab swag from the performers so you can always remember your visit.
The best part about supporting this festival? They give back to the local community in a huge way! They provide an annual scholarship through The MAY FUNd presented to Kingsville, Harrow and Leamington graduating students, donate Festival and Road to Folk Fest Concert tickets and merchandise for fundraising efforts by community groups and local organizations, cultivate and nurture community partnerships while cross-promoting to share marketing costs, encourage and actively cultivate youth volunteering throughout the year and even support other non-profit and fundraising groups by offering complimentary booth space at the festival.
They’re also very committed to a clearer and green environment and it shows! They’re partnered with local groups and businesses to reduce landfill, providing visible and easy to access on-site compost and recycle stations run by a youth Green Team, donating bottles and cans to the local Scouts for deposit, providing a free clean water drinking station and free Festival water bottles, using solar-powered golf carts to transport attendees and supplies, sourcing locally produced food to feed their volunteer crew of over 300 people and even ensuring responsible disposable of all grey water discharge into the municipal treatment system. It doesn’t get much greener than that folks!
If you want to learn more about the festival, check out the vendors or explore the performer lineup, visit their website at https://www.kingsvillefolkfest.org/