(Submitted by Elizabeth Curry, Festival Coordinator)

Believe it or not, summer is nearing an end. But don’t let anyone tell you that festival season is over. The Under the Moon Heritage Community Festival is coming up on Saturday, September 28th! As a resident in the Heritage community, I am excited to be a part of coordinating this year’s festival. Let me tell you a bit about what I’m working on for the event.

We have an amazing mix of people that live in Heritage. Some have lived in the neighbourhood for decades, others are experiencing the neighbourhood as their first Canadian home. People get busy with all manner of employment and activity—beer makers, butchers, yoga teachers and full-time parents all live in Heritage! The list goes on and on. This festival is a chance for you to meet your neighbours and share your stories.

One of the ways that we hope to nurture this is with a Human Library.Taking inspiration from the popular annual partnership between the CBC and libraries across Canada (including our own RPL), guests at the festival will have the opportunity to borrow a Heritage area “book” (i.e., neighbour) and find out their story. Given the incredible diversity of our neighbourhood, there will be a wide selection of “books” to choose from!

The kids in our neighbourhood are, as always, a main focus of the festival, and I have had input from some experienced folks (i.e., parents) to help me come up with many ideas for exciting activities and workshops. These ideas include: make-your-own hobby horses; pumpkin decorating; the ever-popular Dino Bouncer; a giant-sized pile of leaves to jump in and so much more! If you would like to volunteer to lead a kid’s activity, please let me know! Our stage area will include activities for kids and adults alike, ranging from dance performances, demonstrations, workshops, spoken word poetry and storytelling from a broad range of performers and other talented community members.

We are happy to have received support from SaskEnergy for the Community BBQ component of the festival, which will allow us to keep the prices of food very low, We are also seeking our food and supplies from the Heritage area, which is especially easy given the many fine butchers in the area (Ukrainian Co-op, Fellinger’s, Oskar’s, and Gerry’s Freezer Meats!).

We are currently seeking additional support from local businesses for prizes and supplies. If we haven’t contacted you yet but you are able to offer gift certificates, products or services that would be useful for the festival, please get in touch! We will be sure to highlight your business in the program and/or on the poster as long as we receive your donation in time.

Although our festival is a small one, the old adage still holds true: “Many hands make light work.” As such, if you have time to volunteer for the festival either beforehand or on the day-of, please contact me. Volunteers will receive free tickets for the Community BBQ and will be entered to win a gift package from The Artful Dodger Café and Music Emporium!

Stay tuned for more details to come. Our website will be updated regularly as the festival takes shape. I look forward to seeing you all on September 28th!

Funding for this year’s festival is provided by: