Vancouver Folk Music Festival town hall leads to positive news for possible future of event

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      In the wake of a town hall meeting last week, the Vancouver Folk Music Festival has decided to launch a fundraising and volunteer drive to save the 45-year-old event.

      In January VFMF board announced there would be no fest in 2023 thanks to ongoing financial difficulties. Thanks for a variety of factors, including having to pay artists and suppliers up front, organizers estimated they needed $500,000 in the bank to even consider holding the festival in the future. That led to a call for plans to dissolve the Vancouver Folk Music Festival Society.

      After a town hall meeting Wednesday a decision was made to rescind the motion to dissolve the fest. Instead there’s commitment to saving the VFMF through avenues that include fundraising and a volunteer drive.

      “Our funders, our partners, other festivals, our members, and our audience have said unequivocally that they want to help with the work of saving the festival,” VFMF president Mark Zuberbuhler said in a release.

      He continued with “We want the community to know that the board is dedicated to finding ways to save the Vancouver Folk Music Festival. Now is the time for that support to translate into action so we can build an enduring and sustainable Vancouver Folk Music Festival. We need people to step up now.”

      Those interesting in donating, becoming a member, or volunteering for the rebuilding of the fest are encouraged to go to thefestival.bc.ca. There you’ll also find minutes of the town hall, a full recording of the meeting, and a tab for suggesting initiatives to ensure the festival is financially viable moving forward.

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