Terrific response

Dear Mike:
I would like to thank your writer, Sarah McGinnis, and the Fort Frances Times for the help you recently gave the Rainy River District Music Festival Association.
Festival committee members suggested the course of action and I followed their advice.
Festival has been planned and run by as small a committee as three people, but they must have been a very dedicated and busy three people. The festival has grown remarkably over the past four years and the growth demands that more people help in the running and, most importantly, the planning of the event.
I have said in the past that the festival tries to offer an knowledgeable, impartial assessment of its entrants, whether they be a dancer or a singer or whatever. The festival committee still aims to follow that concept both in the running and planning stages of the event; if not, we don’t belong there as committee members.
Festival, and events like it, are competitions that our community and others across Canada benefit from enormously. Look at the choir and accompanist at your next church service, or consider the pianist at your child’s school’s Christmas concert this year.
Competitors from our local festival have ended up as faculty members at Carleton University and work for major international festivals such as Stratford.
The recent series of three articles that Sarah McGinnis has written regarding the festival have highlighted some of the problems with the running of it. It was truly remarkable to see such a response from the past contestants, their families, and the community to our call for help.
I can only speak for my past seven years with the event, but it has been such a pleasure to see the entrants in competition and at various highlights concerts.
Thank you very much for your help.
Sincerely,
John Jankiewicz
Festival president
(2002-03)
P.S. The festival committee, at all times, welcomes new people to help out at meetings or during the event. If you have any questions regarding festival, please call me at 274-5494.