Goodale Park will be drenched this weekend with colorful and diverse music, overflowing beer mugs, greasy festival food, stanch activists and smiling faces with the 36th annual Community Festival.
ComFest 2008 will commence Friday, June 27 and last through the Sunday, June 29.
Even though ComFest is branded as the “hippie festival,” Mimi Morris, chairwoman of the program guide committee, wants people to know ComFest is more than that.
“It’s just about getting people to know their neighbors because we all share the city,” Morris said
Morris has been involved with ComFest since its origination in 1972 and has missed only two festivals in the past 36 years. Despite all the effort that goes into planning ComFest, Morris finds the end result very satisfying.
“It makes us so happy to make other people happy,” she said. “We want to share and show off.”
Morris said she feels ComFest has had an immeasurable impact on the citizens of Columbus.
“I think we have made the city more tolerant,” she said. “We want people to feel connected to each other and we want the rest of the world to be like ComFest.”
It is hard to miss is the omnipresence of the activism spirit. Information about the Ohio Healthy Families Act, an effort to legally require all Ohio employers to provide paid sick days to their workers, will be available. Volunteers will be registering people to vote in order to pass this legislation in November. Morris said she believes this will be easily accomplished, as previous festivals have registered more than 3,000 voters in a three-day period.
In addition to activism and camaraderie, ComFest also offers a vast array of entertainment for all ages and cultures. Mark Fisher, who organizes the entertainment aspect of the festival, said there will be about 220 different diverse acts performing.
“We look for acts that are good at what they do, acts that represent diversity of culture, acts that the audience enjoys, performers that contribute to their community,” Fisher said. “We try to get as much diversity as we can.”
Fisher heralds some of the performers who come back to the festival each year. Willie Phoenix, Willie Pooch, Hoodoo Soul and Terry Keller are just a few of what he calls Comfest icons.
“They are like our family elders we treat with respect,” he said.
Fisher said ComFest visitors should be sure to check out Couch Forts on the Solar stage Saturday night. He describes them as a unique musical group that consists of violin, banjo and electric guitar. He also recommended Michelle Shocked and Black 47 who are national acts and political activists.
Both Morris and Fisher said they hope people will help out with this year’s ComFest. Fifteen hundred volunteers are expected to facilitate this year’s ComFest. Fisher said he fears it might not be enough.
“My hope is that people will help us by not bringing in bottles and cans, disposing of recyclable trash in the proper containers at he festival and volunteering to help us clean after the music is done,” he said. “My fear is that people won’t help us with that problem.”
Morris encourages everyone attending to also be a volunteer.
“People should not just come to it but become a part of it,” he said. “Get a feeling of ownership.”
Volunteers will receive a T-shirt and tokens for beer and food.
Morris said he wants people to have a good time but also adhere to the rules of ComFest, such as cleaning up after themselves and recycling. Visitors are also asked not to bring coolers, cars or dogs. She especially stressed the importance of buying beer at the festival.
“Don’t bring your own beer because it’s a violation of our permits,” she said. “Even though it’s $4 per beer, the sale of beer permits ComFest.”
This year’s ComFest is certain to be a success as it has been in the previous years. Morris said she is excited at the idea of newcomers and welcomes them.
“Come on down and find out what it’s all about,” she said.
For more information on ComFest or to become a volunteer for this weekend’s festival, visit www.comfest.com.
Amanda Forbes can be reached at [email protected].
