MAKING PASTY FEST POSSIBLE

Text by Leah Polzien, Executive Director, Main Street Calumet.

Photo courtesy of Rick Allen 99.3 The Lift.

Any event, no matter the size, takes a lot of effort to put together. What many see as a single day of fun is the result of months of preparation.  I am beginning to see community events not just as fundraisers for a cause or a good time but as community team building exercises. Each time you put an event together you find yourself working together with a variety of people and building relationships with them. Pasty Fest 2017 was the result of many hours of communication, outreach, networking and sometimes compromise. What follows is a list of those who contributed and deserve a pat on the back! Let the length of this list be a testament to the hours invested and connections made.

THANK YOU:

To the Pasty Fest Committee; Krissy Delesha, Valerie Newmann, Lynette Webber, Josh Mortti, Jim Newman, and David Crowley. Thank you for donating your time and brain power, you are gems.

To the Keweenaw National Historical Park for providing a space for Kid's Activities, bodies to help with set-up and tear down, and last minute signage creation. A special thank you to Park Superintendent Wendy Davis for taking on the Rock Painting Class at the last minute when not one, but two instructors suffered medical issues!

To the folks at Universal Metals, Copper Island Printing and A1 Toilets for quick work and being flexible with last minute changes. To Café Rosetta for providing toilet paper when we ran out in the ladies room. To Copper World for providing electrical access and displaying the Pasty Fest awards. To the gents at Peninsula Auto for generously allowing us access to their electrical panel, to power the entire event if it hadn't rained! To Ken Olkkonen for electrical wizardry. To  CLK Schools Food Service for lending us warmer ovens so we could conduct the Bake-Off. To Tim Gasperich and Calumet Township for their help locating and delivering straw for seating. To Columbia Linen for rugs to cover power cords and prevent tripping hazards. Fred Reese for subsidizing our need for the cool awards he produces! To the Village of Calumet for help with street closures, parade guidance, and police presence. Trish Golus and Phyllis Locatelli for letting us access the Heritage Center repeatedly after hours. To Todd VanDyk and everyone at Houghton Community Broadcasting for their excellent evert coverage, sponsorship and support. Keweenaw Coffee Works for providing burlap bags for costume construction. The CHS Band and ROTC for coming out to perform during their summer break! To our parade route security helpers thanks for helping to keep everyone safe!

Thanks to all the volunteers who helped with everything from costume creation, to selling pasties, to cleaning bathrooms; Ed and Dori Hallquist, Kathie Dianda, the Beiring Families of Calumet and Cedar Bay, Deb and Lew Lambert, Sue Dana, Mike Delesha, James Dahl, Lee Peterson, Candy Pham, Patty Webber, Katie Keller, Brandi Golden, and Caitlin Woodie.

Thank you to our event sponsors Pasty Central and Vollwerth's for providing support to make this event happen. To our Baker's Basket sponsors; ShopKo Calumet, Copper World, Isle Royale and Keweenaw Parks Association and Karl Larson.

To our vendors for showing up again this year, we know it's a LOT of work; Denali Restaurant, Connie's Kitchen, Suomi Restaurant, Lindell's, Pasty Central, Copper Harbor Pasty, Vollwerth's, Poshak's Projects, MSU Extension, Keweenaw Time Traveler, Upper Great Lakes Family Health Center, Girl Scouts of America, Lady A's Crafts, BHK Child Development, Deb Strieter, Lois Woodworth, Juneberry Gifts, Little Brothers Friends of the Elderly, Keweenaw National Historical Park, Delightful Designs, Helping Hands for Vets, Project Hope, Calumet Women's Club, Little Laurium Luxuries, Mucked Up, Copper Country Humane Society, J&J Fish Pond, North Harvest CSA, Boersma Family Farm, the Veterans Center, Annika's Cupcakes, and Circle Back Farm,

To all the musicians and performers; Bob Hiltunen, Tom Katalin, Bob Norden and Friends, Last Minute Mile, Kerry Paul, Kevin Blackstone, 47 North Fusion, Keweenaw Jui Jitsu, SuperNova Yoga, Hooping with Cecelia, Keweenaw Youth Symphony Orchestra, Calumet High School Drama Club and the Cardio Drummers,  

Last but not least thanks to the members of Main Street Calumet for supporting our organization so we can continue to hold great events and make positive changes in Calumet.
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​If I've failed to mention anyone who helped out with Pasty Fest 2017 please don't hesitate to mention it so I can include your name on this list!