CARLYLE - The Dickens Festival is about community, and celebrating and supporting all the businesses who, all year, donate time, money and support to all the various activities and clubs which thrive in Carlyle.
This festival brings in many out-of-towners to shop in our community and to leave their dollars here where it will make a difference to our local organizations and businesses.
It is about providing opportunities for all the separate clubs and organizations to raise some money: The United Church, the foodbank and all the clubs who set up food booths have the chance for some major fundraising.
It’s about celebrating the local talent, the great life that is possible to live in the rural areas of Saskatchewan, and how our location helps people to thrive and not just survive.
It’s about how we take care of our neighbours, nurture the youth and children and make sure (as best we can) that people are included and supported.
Committee head and longtime volunteer Shelley Slykhuis gracefully agreed to stay on the committee and lend that long-term vision as she and Sandra Dyer have been at this since the festival's inception. They made the trip to Garrison, N.D., many years ago to get inspired and motivated.
Sandra Dyer heads up the thrift sale and decorating, and she recruited Marilyn Brady and a team of others to give her a hand. Those two powerhouse volunteers really get the job done, and they involve many others like Dianne Twietmeyer and Marion Biram to organize, assist and lend their artistic eyes to the whole process.
Not only that, but this amazing team recruited many others: Keith Dyer, Doug Waldner and Paul Twietmeyer as well as Colin Wilson's gang from the high school to help set up, decorate, load and unload.
Dianne Twietmeyer has served in many capacities on the committee, and this year headed up getting the children involved as urchins. Not only did they lend ambiance to the festival with their special song and outfits, but they collected over $500 for the local foodbank as well.
Craig Savill: what a powerhouse. Not only does he lead the Lions club and acts as chairman of the Cornerstone Theatre but he just fills in the gaps. When the band went super late on the first night because of an appreciative crowd, it was Craig who stayed to close up the venue.
Shannon Klatt and Joan Bue: We have a saying: "When something needs to be done, call Shannon", and it’s true. From organizing the food carts (Joan) to the free breakfast (Shannon) to characters on Main Street (Shannon) and filling in the gaps.
Dolores Young and Dawn Faber were veritable machines of efficiency. Between Dolores’ ability to network and market and find suppliers for printing and advertising, and her co-ordination of the markets, bill payments and finances, and Dawn’s dauntless efforts in writing grants, acquiring funding, getting support in the form of people and donations, marketing, Facebook flooding and generally generating enthusiasm and support for the concept, these two were absolute powerhouses.
I came on board, lending my expertise from years of running a non-profit organization (Kitchen Party Music Inc.). I co-ordinated the musician and entertainment recruitment and contracting the scheduling, the programs and graphic work on the circulars (thanks to the help of my husband, William Elliott).
Then we collaborated with my non-profit to present dances and interactive experiences in Fezziwig’s. Of course, you heard me MCing all weekend, promoting all things Carlyle. And I wrote a lot of articles.
Community organizations helped out like the Carlyle branch of the Royal Canadian Legion, who cooked the free breakfast to raise money for the food bank; and the Carlyle District Lions Club, who paid the full amount for one of Canada’s finest children’s entertainers, judged the lighting contest and who knows what else.
The businesses all participated. King's Department Store hired their own raft of musicians, people dressed up and volunteered to man the info-booth (thanks Ron and Donna Matsalla for co-ordinating that).
What we really did miss at the festival, however, was the attendance of our neighbours from White Bear First Nations, who are usually huge supporters, but were decimated by local tragedy. Our hearts broke for the many who were affected, and as MC during the weekend, I tried to hold them in people’s hearts as their community navigates such hardship.
And we missed Ken King. But we talked about him all weekend, remembering how he loved this festival and this community and the difference he made in the lives of all who knew him.
Because that’s what community is all about, that’s what Dickens Festival is all about – celebrating each other, holding tight to our knowing of each other. Also this means that we will be missing ever single member when they are no longer in our midst.
Well done team, and for whomever I may have missed in this article, and I’m sure there are some, my deep apologies.
