Community Arts

FANTASTIC crowd response to all the fun found in Family Arts and Activities area. "Share your Story" booth well-received as young adults read cultural stories aloud, and dozens of guests shared globe-hugging pics via social media --many grins with globe directed to International Festival of Burnsville's Facebook site. FABULOUS audience response to this year's cadre of entertainers. Visit International Festival of Burnsville on Facebook and see the album that mirrors our mission. Do differently? Reassure Native American flagbearer --carrying his tribe's sacred eagle staff, that to walk alongside the US flagbearer carrying the American flag well above the staff, is most appropriate. Committee considers hiring additional henna hand-painters as lines are longest there on the Family Arts and Activities hill. Also add two more tall sandwich boards that encourage guests to visit the cultural booths and exhibit indoors in the Ames Center gallery. Within the gallery, the most favored cultural display booths were those of India and Somalia; at both booths, the women dressed guests in cultural attire which resulted in lots of laughter, smiles, and photo opportunities. France and Germany carried on a lively exchange about cheese and wine pairings, wine bottle labels, and the many immigrants who came to Minnesota. Returning to Family Arts and Activities, visitors were encouraged to enter their contact info into a "Where in the World Are You?" book under the Share Your Story Tent --these entries may provide interviews and clips for next year's festival --greater outreach and event promotion. A member of our planning committee (and chairs fam arts and activities area) is also a radio talk show host; Naseema interviewed Burnsville Mayor Elizabeth Kautz, alongside our festival chair Amber Swiggum, for nearly a full hour of festival which ran 'round social media as a podcast! Our outreach efforts were rewarded in many ways: In addition to more sponsors on-site during International Festival of Burnsville, hundreds of guests toured "Tracks in the Snow: The Muslim Experience in Minnesota" art gallery exhibit. Do differently? Possibly rent an ATM for our guests to have easier accessibility to cash. Perhaps close 126th Street as space to position sponsors/food vendors; thus opens space in the park for families to gather/picnic. Also need more roving volunteers to supply water on activities hill, sell raffle tickets, alert guests to the first aid tent, and promote cultural booths/gallery exhibit within Ames Center. Marketing efforts to piggyback other community events prior to International Festival of Burnsville. On Family Arts and Activities hill, consider more activities geared to the interests of teenagers. Position rolling coolers in major volunteer areas for more easily available bottled waters; purchase rubber gloves for the Lions' Club volunteers as they handle bottled waters. Also witnessed many more wheelchairs, walkers, and canes than in recent years; delighted to see a girl use her chair to wade into the water feature, and with her grandparent's help, enjoy water play with the other kiddos. Quantitative: Accumulative 5K crowd made for record event food and drink sales; high-energy lessons in cultural arts brought by 40+ culturally diverse performing or instructional artists. A pleasing 25% increase among sponsors on-site. Qualitative: Hundreds of guests toured "Tracks in the Snow" gallery exhibit; hundreds more listened/danced to 6.5 hours of outdoors onstage entertainment.