On the Board
Activities and Initiatives of the SJFAC Board of Directors

Just a month into 2004 and things are already well under way for this summer's festival; this year the province celebrates its French heritage, so look for some wonderful francophone music as part of this year's Common Ground series. Of course, there will be lots of the great traditional local music that is the core of the festival too. Last October's fabulous Martin Carthy concert left many ears eager for more; watch for another in our series of concerts featuring traditional musicians from away.

The infamous Pulling Out All the Stops calendar has gathered lots of publicity, and raised both eyebrows and funds for the council. The final tallies have yet to be figured, but overall the project has been a great success. Thanks to the brave boys who bared much (or most), and to Sheilagh O'Leary for her wonderful eye.

In late January, about 45 hearty souls helped raise $1000 for the council by spending a day participating in the testing of Marine Fire Rescue equipment. Many, many thanks to those who slid down slides, climbed through tubes, and literally hung about in life boats for several hours in support of two good causes.

The new website is up and running, and a beautiful thing it is. Glen Collins and J. Barry have designed us a visually engaging and very accessible site. Be sure to check it out. Often. Cheers for webmaster Rick West, who has put a tremendous amount of time into learning the programmes needed for the new site. Glen and J. have also been hired to help us with marketing and promotional strategies, and with establishing a "brand" identity -- essentially to help us find better ways to reach a broader audience. The funds come from a one-time federal grant.

Fundraising for the Youth Folk Arts Education Subsidy continues. The fund was created to help defray the costs of traditional music education for young people. To find out more about the Youth Folk Arts Education Subsidy, please contact the SJFAC office at 576-8508 or by e-mail office@sjfac.nf.net.