Minutes from the June 11 meeting of the Zimfest Association Board of Directors have been posted.
Minutes from the June 11 meeting of the Zimfest Association Board of Directors have been posted.
Minutes from the May 14th meeting of the Zimfest Association Board of Directors have been posted.
Please also note Workshop Changes posted on June 6.
Minutes from the April 16th meeting of the Zimfest Association board of directors have been posted.
Minutes from the March 12th meeting of the Zimfest Association board of directors have been posted.
Minutes from the February 12th meeting of the Zimfest Association board of directors have been posted.
Minutes from the November 13th, December 11th and January 8th meetings of the Zimfest Association board of directors have been posted.
We are excited to announce that all Zimfest 2023 concerts, daytime and evening, will be OUTSIDE on a stage in the OSU Lower Campus, also called McNary Field. This decision was made for several reasons: the main concert venue at OSU, LaSells-Stewart Center, will be unavailable because of renovation, and both alternative ballrooms (in the Student Union and Alumni Center) were judged to have shortcomings such as minimal backstage space and no loading dock.
Our concert production team suggested several years ago that we have our evening concerts outdoors, but none of our recent hosts allowed music outside after 10 PM. The music (noise) curfew in the OSU Field will be 11 PM, allowing us plenty of time for music-making under the stars!
This is the year! One big advantage to us is that we will be able to make all concerts open to all performers regardless of visa status! (No “visiting Zimbabweans perform in the afternoon only” this year!) Admission will be by donation, with pre-concert ticket sales beginning when registration opens (targeted for May 1). Those of you who have registered for workshops by donation in the past should be aware that requesting donations for events that are effectively free allows us to pay honoraria to Zimbabweans who come here on a B1 visitors visa (see Workshops by Donation, scroll down). We ask that you support our visiting artists, and support Zimfest’s move to Evening Outdoor Concerts, by donating as much for your concert tickets as you paid in previous years.
Of course, none of this will happen unless we receive more applications for performing and teaching! Remember, the application deadlines for Zimfest 2023 are coming soon, February 28.
Performer applications here
Teacher applications here
ZA Board and Organizing Committee
Music Dancing Across Borders
To those of you who might be worried about getting rained on during outdoor concerts, please note that there is historically a 3% chance of rain that first weekend in August, the lowest for the entire year. This is the year!
Minutes from the September 11th and October 9th meetings of the Zimfest Association board of directors have been posted.
Dear Zimfest Community,
Every month, the Zimfest Association Board meets to make decisions for our organization, and minutes from these meetings are posted to this blog. Although the board’s work is less visible at times than that of the annual organizing committee, it has the important role of creating policy for Zimfest, and guiding the festival into the future.
In the past, we have reached out to recruit new members, but this time I am writing with a more urgent request for new board members. As of right now, the board consists of 8 members, the minimum required per the rules for 501(c)(3) nonprofits incorporated in the state of Washington.
Several members of the board are leaving in the near future, due to family commitments, and we need to recruit more board members to fulfill this requirement. Furthermore, maintaining a range of tenures on the board, from new to old, is important for a healthy and sustainable organization.
As a board member, you would be expected to attend monthly meetings by Zoom at 6:30 pm Pacific time on the second Sunday of every month, and additionally take on tasks as required between board meetings. There is no formal tenure for board members, but in general we request a commitment to serve for 2 years, to be renewed as long as you have the energy to serve. More information can be found here.
If you are interested in serving as a board member, please reach out to , or me directly at . I’m also happy to schedule a phone call to go into more details, and answer any questions that you have.
Thank you,
Alex Weeks
Zimfest Association President
Minutes from the August 14th meeting of the Zimfest Association board of directors have been posted.
Greetings Zimfest community,
I write to gratefully announce the donation of $2225.99 from the HopeFirst Foundation to the Zimfest Association. HopeFirst was originally founded by Paul Mataruse, Kim Foley and Diana Chamrad and helped fund the US tour by Matemai in 2009 in addition to projects in Zimbabwe and The Gambia. HF President Kim Foley, having moved to Ohio, recently made the decision to close the books on the Foundation and donate the remaining proceeds to Zimfest. The funds will be earmarked for the ZA Travel Expense Fellowship program to assist Zimbabweans traveling to Zimfest in the future. Thank you Kim and HopeFirst!
The ZA Board, following the consensus of Village Meeting participants and the organizing committee, is in the process of seeking a host for Zimfest 2023 that can accommodate a larger audience than this year’s venue (Skagit Fairgrounds and Lincoln Theatre). If you have not yet completed the Post-Festival Survey and have comments for us, please complete the survey before September 1.
Enjoy your summer!
Claire Jones, Festival Coordinator
We Took Flight at Zimfest 2022!
The Zimfest Association board of directors has posted minutes from the May 8th and June 12th board meetings and this year’s Village Meeting.