2020 Canmore Folk Festival: COVID-19 Cancellation Letter To The Community

Folkies,

It is with heavy hearts that we are announcing the cancellation of the 2020 Canmore Folk Festival.

We are as heartbroken as you are.

If the separation and isolation of this pandemic has taught us anything, it is the importance of community. We have always believed a healthy community needs music and the arts. That is more pronounced in the face of struggle and uncertainty. We held out hope for as long as we could that our folk family would be able to join together on the August long weekend to celebrate resilience, creativity, and music.

As we watched the progress of this pandemic, however, we reached the conclusion that the best way to preserve a healthy community and protect the safety of our audience and small town is to cancel. Cancelling is a sign of our community’s strength, compassion and kinship. The decision is a difficult one and is made with all of you – your safety and your health – in mind.

We will be back. The Folk Fest is committed to our community of music makers and appreciators. We are responsible to that community: artists, audience, funders, sponsors, vendors and our irreplaceable volunteers. Music brings people together and we will celebrate that music again.

With the generosity of our sponsors, funders, and you: we are positioned to weather this storm.  We will share a tarp again next year, July 31st – August 2nd, 2021.

What happens next?

We will be offering full refunds to everyone who has purchased a ticket. If you have the means, please consider donating the price  – or a portion – of your ticket back to the Canmore Folk Festival to help us with the fallout of this cancellation.  We will issue a charitable tax receipt in return!   In the next 24-48 hours, we will contact the email address associated with the purchase of a 2020 ticket.

This year will be an unprecedented one for our global community and we are not going away. As we navigate this tricky terrain together we will support the arts in every way possible, and look for creative ways for you to join us.

We wish you and your loved ones every best wish during this difficult time. We look forward to the day when we can safely lay those tarps out with you, settle in with the mountains to frame us, and celebrate our community while we listen to fantastic music.

Sincerely,

Your Folk Fest Family