Swannanoa Shindig – A New Series of Traditional Appalachian Music, Dancing, and Fun in Historic Beacon Village        

Searching for some unique and inexpensive local family fun?  The Swannanoa Business Association and many Swannanoa Valley residents have just the solution for you right here in our historic Beacon Mill Village on the first Friday night of each month!

Bring your chairs and wear your dancing shoes to a new monthly community music series, Swannanoa Shindig, held in the heart of Swannanoa beginning on Friday, June 4 at 6 p.m.!  Featuring traditional Appalachian Mountain music and dancing, Swannanoa Shindigs will include activities such as pie eating contests, cake walks, turkey calling, drawings for prizes, hopscotch, woodworking, and face painting.

The Swannanoa Babe Ruth Youth Softball and Baseball League will be leading Bingo games as their fund raiser, and other groups will be leading jumping rope, playing jacks and hoola-hoops.  Planners also hope for old timey demonstrations and sales of whittling, weaving, quilting, clogging, old timey photo booth, horse shoes, hollering, antique cars, hands-on musical instruments, and ice cream making.

Farmers may sell their vegetables, herbs, and flowers from their trucks with no fee. Local restaurants will offer a variety of selections for delectable dinners, snacks, and non-alcoholic drinks. Everyone is encouraged to bring a chair.

Local help is needed

Anyone interested in supporting these events with demonstrations of traditional mountain skills and crafts, on-site volunteer assistance, fund raising opportunities, in-kind or paid sponsorships should contact the Swannanoa Business Association. Especially needed are gifts of products, coupons, or services for our raffles.         Vendors, helpers, and sponsors may participate only one Friday or any combination of the five Friday evenings Sponsorships are extremely flexible and donations can be designated for a single event or spread out over multiple months. Sponsors will be recognized on SwannanoaShindig.com, Facebook, in the Swannanoa Business Association’s “Swannanoa Bee”, and many other places. See the application or website for more details. Sponsorships can be in the form of products or services, volunteer time, or cash contributions.

A planning group, open to all, meets each Wednesday at noon at Moments Café across from AllState Insurance. Plans are to have the Swannanoa Shindigs the first Friday evening of each month: June 4, July 2, August 6, September 3, and October 1. This schedule presents vendors and sponsors several opportunities to feature their business or skills and provide residents five fabulous first Fridays filled with music, dance, and fun community sprit! Located off of Highway 70 near I-40 Exit 59, Beacon Village adjoins the old Beacon Textile Mill site and still has the Swannanoa Bank building, now Beacon Antiques, and other unique structures.

Solar Powered Sound System

Kicking off the first Swannanoa Shindig on Friday, June 4 will be our own Joe Hallock & The Flat Creek Boys, a lively and talented group excited about playing in front of their hometown folks!  “Using a solar powered sound system, we look forward to connecting past music with the power of the future!” exclaims Hallock, who works for Sundance Power Systems. Serving as the sound consultant, he also leads the booking of the musicians and callers for all five Shindigs. His band is on YouTube.

Swannanoa resident, John Alger says “The idea for the Swannanoa Shindig grew from discussions I had about the possibility of creating a Swannanoa Valley Traditional Heritage Center which would focus heavily on mountain music, dance, and fun.” Preliminary discussions are also underway concerning the potential for a Textile Museum in Swannanoa possibly as an annex to The Swannanoa Valley Museum, to honor the major role Beacon Manufacturing played in the area.  An expert in several interesting mountain music instruments, John Alger will be demonstrating playing the spoons at the Shindig.

The Swannanoa Business Association’s objectives are also to provide free community events for the people of The Swannanoa Valley and surrounding areas and to draw people and attention to the downtown area of Swannanoa located between Highway 70 and I-40.  Religious and political groups are permitted, but no alcohol or smoking or pets will be allowed.

Shindig Planner Don Talley, BlackMountainMusicScene.com, states “We want to foster a sense of pride in and respect for the heritage of The Swannanoa Valley and provide family-friendly events which appeal to a broad range of ages”.  Some churches in the downtown historic area may be having evening yard sales during the Shindigs.

“We’ll be blocking off the east end of Railroad Street so we can dance in the back of the Main Fire House lot. We are most grateful to the Swannanoa Volunteer Fire Department and Chief Penland for their use of the space and for the support of their members” explains Nancy Duggan, another enthusiastic Swannanoa Shindig organizer, long time Appalachian music fan, and expert dancer.

“This valley is full of fascinating talent, and we hope many people come to enjoy hearing them.” Doris Sotirellis comments. A professional bassist with Clearwater Connections, a nationally recognized duo of traditional music, she knows of what she speaks! Don you dancing shoes, grab a chair and come on down Friday June 4!

For a Swannanoa Shindig vendor, sponsor, or helper application, contact 337-4718, SwannanoaShindig.com or  burhoej@gmail.com. Or send checks directly to The Swannanoa Business Association, P.O. Box 1124, Swannanoa, N.C. 28778.