Festival Awards 2005

Carolina in the Fall is Award Winning Festival - AGAIN!

The Carolina in the Fall Festival has been recognized for the third consecutive year for excellence in the festival industry. The North Carolina Association of Festivals and Events recently held the annual conference and Showfest in Charlotte, North Carolina. During the Awards Luncheon on the final day of the conference, the Carolina Showfest Excellence Awards were presented for the 2005 calendar year. Festivals and events from across North Carolina competed in different categories. The NCAF&E Board noted that there was a record number of nominations which made the awards process was considerably more competitive this year.

The Carolina in the Fall Festival, held on the Shepherd Farm off of Armory Road in North Wilkesboro, October 14-16, 2005 was the winner of four awards.

• Best Website for the festival website that was re-designed prior to the 2005 festival to promote a more user-friendly format that more closely resembled the quality of Carolina in the Fall. The website is www.CarolinaInTheFall.com
• Best Miscellaneous Printed Material for the festival program that was available during Carolina in the Fall free of charge to all festival attendees. The program contained Festival Greetings from the Festival Hosts and the Musical Hosts; the Stage Schedule; Petey's Place Children's Area Schedule; detailed information about each musician; sponsor information, vendor information, special activities information; and, a special thank you to specific volunteers.
• Best Sponsorship Packet for cultivation of relationships with potential sponsors to ensure that both the festival and the individual or business mutually benefit from the sponsorship endeavor.
• Best Press Kit which includes Press Releases and communication with various Media Representatives for promotional articles and/or interviews.

David Culler was nominated by the Carolina in the Fall Festival Organizers for the Volunteer of the Year Award. An excerpt of his award nomination explains the scope of David Culler's dedication and commitment to Carolina in the Fall:

David Culler's seemingly continual presence at the festival site began the week prior to the festival and David's efforts in helping festival organizers prepare for the festival were amazingly dedicated. Because David Culler works in the medical profession, his volunteer responsibilities during the festival included the First Aid area. Thankfully, there were few needs for medical attention during the festival and David's time was filled with other responsibilities. From musician transportation to stocking concession stands to meal deliveries for staff, David willingly proceeded with any task asked of him. Throughout the event, The Kruger Brothers, who are the Musical Hosts of the festival, recognized and commented on David Culler's dedication as a volunteer. Everyone who knows David is aware of his admiration for music and his love of playing the guitar and singing. On the last day of the event, The Kruger Brothers arranged with the Festival Director Brenda Shepherd to surprise David Culler as a special thank you for all of his work. During the last stage set, Brenda radioed David Culler and asked him to join her on-stage to relax and enjoy the last couple of hours of music since he had only had a limited opportunity to listen to music during the festival. After sitting on-stage for a couple of songs, David was called up front to the microphone and asked to join in playing and singing. His look of shock was priceless as he happily picked up a guitar, began strumming and sang a solo on-stage with The Kruger Brothers accompanying him. At that moment, David Culler's involvement in Carolina in the Fall had come full circle. He became involved in the festival because he loved the music and wanted to promote the festival. After three years of involvement and many days of extremely hard work, David was singing on stage with his musical heroes and his appreciation for the music was never more obvious.

Carolina in the Fall also nominated Wilkes Regional Center's New Beginnings Birthing Center as Sponsor of the Year for the new sponsorship relationship established between the WRMC New Beginnings Birthing Center and the festival.

As a result of the sponsorship, Petey's Place, the children's area, was expanded and the schedule was designed to allow children to visit during the regular festival schedule. Children of all ages were encouraged to join in the fun with face painting, carnival games, crafts, puppet shows, storytime, and special performances, all of which were provided free of charge to children of all ages. Children could attend the activities alone or with their parents and many families felt comfortable leaving their children in Petey's Place during activities while others attended together and made it a family event. The collaboration between Wilkes Regional Medical Center's New Beginnings Birthing Center and the Carolina in the Fall Festival enabled the festival to meet a festival goal of providing a family-atmosphere event.

Dan Eller of Party Time Rentals, Inc was nominated for Associate of the Year, for his efforts in assisting with site development and optimal use of the festival grounds. Dan Eller is originally from North Wilkesboro and now lives in Charlotte where he owns and operates his rental business. Party Time Rentals Inc has earned a reputation as a high-quality rental company with a tremendous inventory and experienced event planners for Charlotte and the Carolinas. An excerpt from the nomination illustrated the ways Dan Eller contributed to the success of Carolina in the Fall:

In planning the Third Annual Carolina in the Fall festival, organizers automatically included Dan Eller of Party Time Rentals, Inc in the process. He consistently provided suggestions in the site development and optimal use of festival grounds. With Dan's leadership, plans for the festival site quickly took shape. Dan Eller has such expansive expertise in preparing festival grounds because Party Time Rentals, Inc is contracted to work at many venues including race tracks, stadiums, convention centers, downtown streets, parks, and, particularly, festivals. His outstanding knowledge of planning venues greatly influenced festival logistics for Carolina in the Fall such as planning for the flow of pedestrian traffic, vendor area set-up, children's area layout, and the main stage and sound engineering control area.

Plans are underway for the Fourth Annual Carolina in the Fall Festival which is described as more of a celebration and will be held October 21, 2006. The Festival is hosted by Robert and Brenda Shepherd on the Shepherd Farm off of Armory Road in North Wilkesboro. The Kruger Brothers are the Musical Hosts of the Festival and, together with the Shepherds, they are extremely excited to present the celebration format of the festival this year. Special plans for the new format of the festival will be announced soon. Tickets and information are available by calling 336-667-5344 or by visiting the website: www.CarolinaInTheFall.com