FolkFire Articles
July/August 1997
FolkFire Makes Mahjor Distribution Change
by The Board of FolkFire
We will be making some changes in the way that FolkFire is distributed. Starting with the Sept./Oct, l997 issue we will no longer be mailing it free to everyone’s homes. Instead, FolkFire will continue to be distributed to dance and music groups, our advertisers and additional sites around town, similarly to the way that the Riverfront Times is distributed. We also welcome suggestions for new distribution points. If you wish to have FolkFire mailed directly to you, that will still be available for a subscription fee of only $6 per year. Everyone who has donated or advertised in the last year will continue to get it delivered to them through Aug, l998 at no extra charge.
The board feels this change is necessary due to the increased costs of printing and mailing, and the lack of voluntary contributions at this time. (Our thanks to all of you who have contributed!) The alternative was to decrease the quality of our newsletter considerably (down to regular newsprint, and/or to change the format dramatically), which we chose not to do that at this time. One thing that we might be able to do with some of the money saved from the mailings, is to partially compensate workers for some of what’s involved in putting this newsletter together. See Dan’s article below for details on help we need, on a for-pay or volunteer basis. We enjoy distributing this newsletter to the thousands of people whom it regularly reaches, and hope to still be able to keep reaching all of you.
Das Cajuns Are Coming!
by Donna Eckberg
July 11 through July 13 brings the seventh annuual Cajun Concert to Stone Hill Winery, located in Hermann, MO on the north bank of the Missouri River. This event, hosted by the winery, includes authentic Cajun music, food and dance. Each year, in honor of Bastille Day, Blackie Forestier and the Cajun Aces come from Lafayette, LA, along with their own "Fan Club" dancers, to play for your listening and dancing pleasure.
Blackie Forestier is a living legend, having played for more than 30 years, promoting Cajun music and culture. He has received several awards, including his 1993 induction into the Cajun French Music Associan Hall of Fame in Lake Charles, LA. In 1995 he received the Cajun Music Pioneer Award. When you see him in action, you'll understand why he deserves such honors.
The "Fan Club" is a group of well-seasoned dancers who can show you how to dance the Cajun way. There's nothing like dancing with someone who "has it"--the rhythm, that is. The dance styles are simple, but take practice like any motor skill. Cajun two-step, waltz and jig or jitterbug will be featured, along with some line dances. The dancers also put on several demonstration dances throughout the weekend, featuring those flashy jitterbug moves with two, three or four people dancing together in a group. Of special interest is the "contra-danse," which is an old mixer dance done in a circle of couples. A woman from the Lafayette area reconstructed this dance from memory, to help bring it back to life.
Last year, the Fan Club had grown to 40 couples with 28 of those couples coming to Stone Hill as ambassadors of Cajun culture. One couple, Rodney and Fay Dugas, have been coming to Stone Hill for this event since 1991. My husband Bill and I have also been attending each year and watching the event grow. The first year we were new to Cajun dance, having learned it from a video at home. Rodney was so surprised to see someone here who could do Cajun jitterbug that he accused us of being from Louisiana! The Fan Club dancers reach out to get people on the dance floor and to spread the gospel of dance. (It's been said that you can applaud the musicians and show your appreciation with your feet!) I take great delight in seeing the French names on their name tags and hearing that Cajun accent from some of the nicest people that I've ever met.
Live Cajun music, dance, food and of course Stone Hill wines will be available at the Winery on Friday, July 11 from 6:00-10:00 pm, and on Saturday and Sunday, the 12th and 13th, from 1:00-6:00 pm. Come out and join in the fun. Come early if you want to get on the dance floor and get a seat under the pavillion.(The original dance floor was too small to accomodate all who wanted to dance back then, so Jim Held of Stone Hill had the current pavillion built for the next year, and things can still get crowded!) Seating is also available outside for a reduced price. Call 1-800-909-WINE for additional information. To book a bed and breakfast room call the Hermann Visitor center at 1-800-932-8687.
Editor / Layout Positions Available
by Dan Klarmann
As of August 18th 1997, following the publication of the Back-to-School / Halloween (September/October) issue, I will be resigning as Editor-in-Chief, President and Layout manager of FolkFire, but will remain on the board with title as yet to be determined. I will continue to manage the FolkLine voice mail system, maintain the mailing list, edit the Web page (www.FolkFire.org) and the events database, answer and route the email, and distribute the incoming postal mail. If anyone would like to take over any of these other jobs, they also can be made available.
Although I will keep the internet version of the newsletter current, the following jobs need to be filled now if we are to have a paper version of the Thanksgiving/End-of-Year issue in November/December:
Managing editor: This position needs a take-charge individual who will chair the editorial staff meetings, decide on the theme for each issue, call or delegate the contacting of writers, reviewers and group representatives, and manage the editors, proofreaders, and layout staff. The work requires occasional activity for the first 4 weeks of the issue, and several hours a day for the week prior to printing (mid-month before the issue dates). This person should probably come to board meetings, but the editorial staff has been, and can be, run independantly, subject to FolkFire board policies.
Layout/Paste-Up: The new layout person needs a Windows95 machine with 80 megs free disk space to load Adobe Pagemaker and our files, or else willingness to port the newsletter to the page layout platform of your choice. Most of the newsletter is digital. There is only a small amount of physical paste-up required to place the ads and occasional graphics. Layout can be done entirely in the week before printing. Must work closely with the editor(s). I am quite willing to train someone, starting by mid-July.
As mentioned in the article by the board regarding our distribution changes, we might be able to make at least partial compensation available for these positions as well as some of the other labor intensive jobs.
We can also always use help in ad sales, editing, distribution, special event planning, and people to do the work delegated by the Managing Editor (writing, reviewing, calling, etc). Any volunteer is welcome to attend board meetings, and significant contributors are usually invited to join the board.
It is important that people willing to take on the critical positions call me as soon as possible at 771-7619 (# disconnected in 4/2002).