Welcome to the
October 3, 4, 5, 2014
Published by The Omak-Okanogan County Chronicle
Page 2 — 2014 Okanogan Family Faire
Welcome to the 2014 Family Faire FROM THE FAIRE PRESIDENT Debbie Goodrich We welcome you to the 2014 Okanogan Family Faire and the 41st annual “Barter Faire.” We would like to thank all of our volunteers and all those whose dedication makes this Faire possible every year. This is a family event that supports, community, health, the environment, encourages a slow food trade, sharing of skills and knowledge, arts and crafts, performance and storytelling. This is truly a time of reunion and renewal for those that gather here. It’s an opportunity for people from near and far to gather and celebrate. With gratitude, we celebrate cultural diversity, the earth, the spirit and love of mankind and all life. Rich in culture, history, trade, music and the arts, we gather as friends, neighbors and family. It is an experience where lifelong bonds and relationships are formed. It’s a time when hugs
“ This is truly a time of reunion and renewal for those that gather here. President Debbie Goodrich
” abound. This year, we are again featuring music on the Amplified and Solar stages. There will be workshops in the Skills Sharing Center at the northwest corner of the Faire. The Skills Center is a place to learn, teach and share. Artisan Row on Main Street will have many interesting and amazing arts and crafts demonstrations for Faire goers to see and learn. Check out the Free Store where everything is free. Visit our information booth. Check out our First Aid and Green Okanogan Recycling. And if you want to rest, visit and regroup, stop by one of our hospitality camps that are located throughout the Faire. This year, we will have maps posted in
various locations throughout the Faire marked with “you are here” to help people navigate and ensure you see all that the Faire has to offer. We look forward to seeing you all this year at the Faire and extend a warm welcome to our friends, neighbors, family and community. We hope you enjoy the “Barter Faire” and experience the beauty and excitement of the many cultural offerings. There is a saying by Virginia Satir, a respected family therapist: “We need four hugs a day for survival. We need eight hugs a day for maintenance. We need twelve hugs a day for growth.” You can easily get enough hugs to last a year at the Okanogan Family Faire.
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Spectators from across the region gather at last year’s ‘Barter Faire.’
Okanogan Family Fair Board of Directors President: Debbie Goodrich Vice President: Leilani Kilpatrick Secretary: Dave Sorensen Treasurer: Tim Vallo Director: Ted Bryant Director: Zac Gorba Alternate: Kathy Johnson
Fair Manager Tim Vallo 2014 Okanogan Family Faire Magazine
The Chronicle
A cook serves dinner to volunteers during the 2012 Okanogan Family Faire on Cayuse Mountain.
©2014 The Omak-Okanogan County Chronicle Owned and operated by Eagle Newspapers Inc. Roger Harnack, Editor and Publisher Brock Hires, Section Editor Teresa Myers, Advertising Manager P.O. Box 553, Omak, WA 98841 618 Okoma Drive, Omak, WA 98841 509-826-1110 • 800-572-3446 • 826-5819 fax •www.omakchronicle.com
2014 Okanogan Family Faire — Page 3
Faire kicks off Friday in highlands Festivities continue through Sunday on Cayuse Mountain
Amplified stage schedule
Friday Noon Honoring The People, Native Drum and Song 1:30 p.m. Bryan Warhall 3 p.m. Randy Battle Bluz Band 4:30 p.m. Ruby Rust 6 p.m. Eb & Flow 7:30 p.m. Planetary Refugees 9 p.m. Rise N Shine Band 10:15 p.m. Fire Dancers 11p.m. The Company Band
By Brock Hires The Chronicle CAYUSE MOUNTAIN — An empty field nestled in the Okanogan Highlands will soon become the most populated community in Okanogan County. Thousands of people are expected to attend the 41st annual Okanogan Family Faire — commonly known as “Barter Faire” — at the top of Cayuse Mountain Road, north of state Highway 20 between Tonasket and Aeneas Valley The Faire begins Friday at 76 W. Cayuse Mountain Road. Gates open for campers at 8 a.m. Friday, with events and activities continuing throughout the weekend. Vendors will be allowed to set up Thursday. Organizers say the majority of the people attending the event camp on-site, but day passes are available. Fees are charged for entry and camping.
Drum and Song Noon Hippies on Vacation 1:30 p.m. Johnny and the Moondogs 3 p.m. Lota and Friends 4:30 p.m. Outer Space Blues Band 6 p.m. Knowbody Knew 7:30 p.m. The Medicine Brothers 9 p.m. Hybrid Vibe 10:15 p.m. Fire Dancers 11 p.m. Sick Donkey Records
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Randy Battle Bluz Band performing at last year’s Family Faire. Campfires are allowed on thegrounds with posted permits unless the state Department of Natural Resources says otherwise. Okanogan County Sheriff Frank Rogers encourages all who attend to have fun and be careful. “Enjoy it,” he said. “Have fun and remember it’s still dry out there. We don’t need any fires.” Another policy that is still in effect is the prohibited use of marijuana, alcohol and other
illegal drugs on faire grounds. “We don’t allow drugs or alcohol at the faire,” organizers said. “If we see it, you will be asked to leave our grounds.” Sheriff Rogers said the security at the event is very good, and should there be disorderly conduct, people are escorted out. “They police it pretty well,” he said. “We work quite a bit with the folks up there. They’ve worked really well with law enforcement.”
Saturday, 11a.m. Honoring The People, Native
Sunday 11 a.m. Parade, Raffle and Prizes, Hosted by Buffalo Mazetti 1 p.m. Chuck Oakes, The Acoustic Clydesdale 2:30 p.m. Up and Away 4 p.m. Slow Children At Play
There is also a full line-up of entertainment, too. As in the past, there will be two stages, an amplified stage and a solar stage. One of this year’s performers, BlueJay Hankins, said this year’s lineup includes a lot of local acts. “The music is a good line up of northwest acts and a lot of homegrown groups from right here in Okanogan County,” Hankins said. “I’m looking forward to going to the Faire.
“It’s kind of a family reunion of sorts for me and my crew.” Assistant manager of Tonasket Natural Foods Co-Op Julie Greenwood said she’s looking forward to another year. “I started working the Faire as one of the volunteer as an organizer in 1995. You’ll find people from all walks of life” Though the Faire attracts thousands of people annually, volunteers manage the non-profit organization.
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Page 6 — 2014 Okanogan Family Faire
Faire-goers call event a ‘reunion’ Celebration puts Cayuse Mountain on the map each year
Marijuana prohibited
By Roger Harnack The Chronicle
Glassware allowed, but must be kept out of view of children
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AYUSE MOUNTAIN – Call it a family reunion, of sorts. The 41st annual Okanogan Family Faire is expected to attract more than 5,000 people to the mountain, where the largest “city” in Okanogan County will pop up Friday and fade away Sunday night. Gale Hogan of Tonasket has been attending the event years and plans to be an on-site vendor again this year. “This will be fun,” she said, noting the event offers her a chance to sell her all-natural wares as well as reconnect with “family.” “It’s a reunion for generations,” she said, noting the Faire has come a long way since it began as the “Barter Faire,” where participants traded goods and services in lieu of selling. Hogan has been a food vendor for several previous events. But this year, she’s switched to selling glycerine soaps, lotions and salves. She’s hoping her Tonasket Farmers Market customers will seek her out at the Okanogan Family Faire this coming weekend. And she hopes her former food customers will stop to pick some of her new products. Hogan is one of dozens of vendors who will be among the thousands in attendance. Other vendors will sell or barter fresh produce, clothing, hats, music, instruments and other items too numerous to name, former event manager Sadie
The Chronicle
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Okanogan Family Faire-goers play the drums together during the 2012 event on Cayuse Mountain. Cohoe said. “There will be all styles of food and all kinds of people,” she said. “It’s going to be better than ever.” Golden Tree Hostel owner Ian Woolworth of Orcas Island said about 100 islanders will be coming to the event from Orcas, Lopez and Vashon islands. The group typically handles day parking for locals wanting to venture into “Barter Town.” “We’re the first people dayparkers will see,” he said, noting he’s been coming to the faire for more than 20 years. In previous years, Woolworth has had a vendor booth.
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“I was the annoying waffle guy with the horn,” he said. While he won’t be a vendor in his own right this year, several islanders will be. “There’ll be lots of vending booths,” he said. “There’ll be coffee and chai from Lopez and chai and baked goods from Orcas.” Woolworth said he’s looking forward to the “energy” found only on Cayuse Mountain. He’s also looking forward to re-connecting with “family.” “There’s this friendship and family that you only see there,” he said. “It’s built over a weekend once a year, and grows with time.”
Islanders will celebrate that connection Friday and Saturday nights at a large hospitality fire, weather permitting. Day-use activities at the Okanogan Family Faire open at 8 a.m. Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Those who come for the day are asked to depart by midnight, to help parking attendants and other volunteers clean up the grounds in preparation for the next day. Faire-goers wishing to stay longer can rent camping spots for the entire weekend, allowing them to participate in activities and listen to music during early morning hours.
TONASKET — Okanogan Family Faire organizers say the use and sale of marijuana remains prohibited this year in public areas. The fairgrounds are on private property, but the streets, pathways and stage areas are considered public spaces, under state law. She acknowledges that a majority of the fairgoers in the past “have been green friendly” and accepting of marijuana usage. Selling marijuana at the barter faire is strictly prohibited in accordance with laws set forth by the state Liquor Control Board. The same rules apply to alcohol. Glassware and pipes are allowed on grounds, and can be sold by vendors, organizers said. However, the products must be kept out of sight of children to help “preserve the family atmosphere,” former event manager and volunteer Sadie Cohoe said last week. Security personnel will be onsite to help curtail marijuanarelated activities. Okanogan County Sheriff’s Office deputies will be available, should security officials need law enforcement assistance. Questions regarding other rules of the Okanogan Family Faire should be directed to on-site managers and organizers.
2014 Okanogan Family Faire — Page 7
‘Barter Faire’ stands test of time Event-goers have been attending festival for 41 years
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By Dee Camp The Chronicle
AYUSE MOUNTAIN – An event that started as a harvest festival for people to trade items needed for the winter and their household larders has evolved over the past 41 years into a regional event attracting thousands to Okanogan County. The Okanogan Family Faire, known over the years by a variety of names, remains most known by its first name, “Barter Faire.” It began in 1973 as a venue for folks who had items to trade. Founder Michael “Skeeter” Pilarski, 66, said the original goal, as outlined on the event’s first poster, was to “git your winter stash of vittles.” Over the years, the event became more of a market, craft fair and music festival. Originally, bartering and giving were the event’s watchwords. Pilarski, who now lives in Hot Springs, Mont., estimated a third of the trade is by barter and the rest on a cash basis. Haggling remains strong. “It’s a lot like a third-world market,” he said. Despite the changes, longtime volunteer and Tonasket resident Michael “Buffalo” Mazzetti said barter remains an important form of currency. Many people post signs detailing what they have and what they need. Mazzetti, now 66, has been involved with and attending the fair since 1974. “There are a lot of double trades,” he said. “People will see
something they need and go around and trade for something that person wants in order to make the trade. It’s quite a fun thing if you go with the intent of only trading.” He said some people try to see how far they can “trade up.” When his children were little, he said he would give each a handful of garlic bulbs and send them out to see what they could find. One bartered and traded item after item until he came back with a bicycle. Music has always been part of the faire, but over the years the event expanded with the addition of food booths, recycling, a kitchen and other site improvements. It’s now highly organized, with traders organized onto labeled “streets,” a security force, sanitation standards and some disabled access. There’s a formal organizing committee and a website. In the beginning, though, organizers tried to keep the event low-key. “For years, we didn’t advertise,” Mazzetti said. “We didn’t want all that many people there.” “The first year, we didn’t announce the site until the day before,” said Pilarski, who’s been to the Faire every year. For awhile, posters were put out but then the faire grew and organizers went back to keeping the site and the date a secret. Sometimes the site would change at the last minute, he said. In 1995, attendance ballooned to around 3,000, partly as a side effect of the August 1995 death of Grateful Dead guitarist Jerry Garcia. “Last year, we were the victims of Jerry Garcia’s death,” volunteer Virginia Mazzetti told Okanogan County commissioners in February 1996 as the county pondered whether to require the
faire to comply with its festival ordinance. Many so-called “Deadheads” – followers of the band – were left with nowhere to go after the band broke up following Garcia’s death. She said many were down and out teenagers looking for something to do after coming from a vigil in Spokane the night before. “We were the next party,” she told commissioners at the time. “It was smaller until 1995, and then there was a big influx of people and it just ballooned out after that,” Tonasket Natural Foods Co-op Assistant Manager Julie Greenwood said. “A lot of people who followed The Dead were looking for places to be with like-minded people,” she said. That year, Phish had been playing in Spokane, and many of its attendees headed west when they caught wind of the barter faire. So many people showed up that Thursday and Friday, that faire organizers had to round up as many residents as they could to help out, Greenwood said. After that, the county dusted off what Mazzetti called “The Woodstock Ordinance,” which requires festivals expected to draw 3,000 or more people to obtain a permit. The first permit was issued in 1998 for the event’s 25th year. The event continued to grow, with attendance sometimes topping 7,000 and merchants in the hundreds, Pilarski said. Event dates are set earlier and announced on the event’s website. Admission has always been charged, but the first year it consisted of an open donation box with some Faire-goers contributing and others raiding the till. Still, the Faire ended up with a bit of money. Mazzetti said the group now looks at when general firearms hunting season begins and tries to
avoid that weekend, with a view to whether the county infrastructure could handle all the extra traffic from both events. “We try to fit the schedule of the county,” he said. Hundreds of volunteers are needed to organize what becomes, for one weekend, the largest “city” in the county. The Faire’s impact on the community is huge, not just from the influx of people but also in an economic sense. “There’s a big infusion of cash,” Pilarski said, estimating 80 percent of the gate receipts stay in the county. “There’s real economic benefit to the county.” Mazzetti said one year Faire organizers tried to demonstrate the impact by encouraging attendees to bring $2 bills and use them when they purchased items downtown. A number of merchants were left with goodsized stacks of $2 bills. The Faire also has gotten the reputation of being a drug- and alcohol-fueled party, but Mazzetti and Pilarski said organizers have always encouraged people to keep contraband off the grounds, or at least out of sight. “We’ve tried to keep drugs down at the Faire,” Pilarski said. “We don’t condone it as an organization. It’s not our aim.” The Faire also has had a “very strong” no-alcohol policy for years, he said. The group’s security force undergoes training and works with the Okanogan County Sheriff’s Office. If there is a problem, the Sheriff’s Office is “very quick to respond,” Mazzetti said. “They are really good to work with,” Sheriff Frank Rogers said, adding problems have been minimal. Over four decades, with thousands of people attending of all ages, from all walks of life and from all over the globe, there have
been relatively few problems, Pilarski said. “We have a respectful citizenry who watch out for each other. We have not had many bad folks, the criminal kind. God has been good to us,” he said, adding that each year he sees “probably 500 friends” at the faire whom he doesn’t see any other time. The faire’s “worst nemesis” over the years has been the weather, Pilarski said. Rain, snow and an ice storm have hit, in one instance driving festival-goers out early and leaving a huge mess to clean up. In another year, when the Faire was on Tunk Mountain, a blizzard hit. The Faire also has taken its place as a community member and benefactor. It helped spawn the Community Cultural Center, Green Okanogan recycling and Tonasket Natural Foods Co-op, and gives scholarships to graduating seniors and grants to community organizations. “It’s helped make Tonasket a great place to live,” Mazzetti said. The event is overseen by groups known as ON and OFF – Okanogan Neighbors and Okanogan Family Faire. ON maintains the property and OFF organizes the event. Mazzetti said the Faire is seeing its third generation of organizers and attendees. “Many of us have taken a step back. It’s changing, but that’s the nature of it. It’s run by the people who attend.” Pilarski said there have been several spring Barter Faires over the year, plus nearly a dozen spinoff events throughout the Northwest. Some lasted a year or two and others longer. “But, none of them have demonstrated the sheer staying power of the Okanogan faire,” he said.
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