by Kirby Lindsay, posted 17 June 2011
On June 14th, five days before the Solstice Parade, the Fremont Arts Council (FAC) held an understandably abbreviated version of their monthly committee of the whole (C.O.W.) meeting. With floats, trolls and other works of art awaiting attention, the meeting felt very second fiddle.
Yet, the meeting did happen, with an awareness that the organization will continue – even after Saturday, June 18th, at Noon – in its mission to “build community year-round with creative endeavors and seasonal celebrations,” as stated on a new membership handout created for this solstice season.
The Parade
While actually last on the agenda, noise and activity of the parade build during the meeting (held, as always, at the Powerhouse) never let minds stray far from this topic. For instance, in the middle of the meeting, three neophyte volunteers arrived, ready to help, and discussion ceased while someone took charge of getting them involved on a project.
Mylinda Sneed, a member of this year’s parade staff, reported that as of the meeting, 50 ensembles had registered to be in the upcoming parade. Last year, 50 ensembles paraded total – with 37 registered as of the COW meeting. Sneed suggested that anyone watching the parade – rather than participating – find a comfortable place to sit, and settle in.
She also reported that on Sunday, June 12th she facilitated what Maque daVis (FAC Board Member, and past president) described as “the 24 hour float.” That is, someone reached her by Facebook on Sunday morning, and by 4p they’d been assigned a float base and a group of friends out transforming it.
Many more volunteers will be needed on the day of the parade, and Sneed emphasized the need for monitors. The Green Hat ensemble also needs people, to go among the parade spectators collecting donations to fund the Solstice Parade, this year and next. Balou de la Rosa said they plan to send Green Hatters out earlier this year, and have worked up a playlist of 45 minutes of songs about money…
The After-Parade Festival, Sneed reminded, will feature live music, a beer garden and food booths at Gas Works Park. In the evening, a more mellow, after-parade gathering needs volunteers – deemed the ‘Fluff Brigade’ – to decorate the space with pillows. On Sunday, all hands on deck (or float) as parade clean-up takes place at Gas Works, at 4p.
All interested volunteers, especially those with questions on where and when to show up, can e-mail the parade staff.
The Other Stuff
The meeting primarily, however, caught the assembled up on business in progress, including the vote to change the FAC by-laws. daVis spoke, in some frustration, about this matter. The item in question is whether to change the by-laws so that the FAC Board can more easily change the by-laws, rather than being required to get a vote of agreement by a majority of the paid membership. daVis voiced his concern that without an ability to bring the by-laws into compliance with state and/or federal regulations, the Board could be held liable and/or the FAC could be shut down.
daVis also reported that, in regards to storage space used by the FAC underneath the Ballard Bridge, “basically, we are out of there.” Peter Toms, and others, voiced their appreciation for the exhaustive work daVis has undertook to move the FAC. An article on the matter of storage, and the need for a new, permanent location, will be published in the FAC newsletter, The SOL, and distributed during the parade.
Everyone spoke about the Fremont Troll, and the short-notice, community based clean-up of ugly graffiti he suffered. Chuck Harrison and Christie Wolf reported that they’d gone to help clean-up, rather than the COW, but found the graffiti nearly gone and so many volunteers on-hand that they came to the Powerhouse. The graffiti, and the clean-up, brought huge media exposure, Sneed acknowledged.
Michael Falcone mentioned that a five-minute short of his documentary on the Troll is being screened, on Saturday, June 18th, at the White Center Film Festival…for those not already in Fremont that evening.
The meeting adjourned, with attendees eagerly dispersed to their ensembles, costumes, floats and assorted other parade projects. The next COW meeting, on July 12th, will be held at the Powerhouse, starting at 7:10p. The July meeting will offer time for brief feedback on the parade – and plenty of information on what else the FAC has got up its collective sleeve. There is more where this came from…
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©2011 Kirby Lindsay. This column is protected by intellectual property laws, including U.S. copyright laws. Reproduction, adaptation or distribution without permission is prohibited.