This content was originally published by the Longmont Observer and is licensed under a Creative Commons license.
LOCOfest is launching its inaugural appearance on Saturday, June 30 from 1-9 p.m. at Bootstrap Brewing, located at 142 Pratt St., Longmont.
Patrons can grab craft beer from Bootstrap Brewing and food from the CHUBurger food truck. Tickets are available now for purchase at locomusicfest.com for $10. Tickets will also be available at the door for $12.
"LOCOfest is the first music festival of its kind - featuring 20 local bands and solo musicians, all based in Longmont, CO," states a press release.
LOCOfest will feature bands such as: Cat Jerky, Tilia Americana, Mojomama, tenbucksixer, Idlewhile, Antonio Lopez Trio, Jackson Cloud Band, Ham Samich, Tradesmen, The Bakersfield Band and several solo artists. The line up for the event is posted on the LOCOfest website.
The music festival is brought together by Brian and Caitlin Rezac.
Brian Rezac "has lived in Longmont for 27 years. He's a singer/songwriter and the host of open mics at The Dicken's Opera House and The Speakeasy, along with a weekly ukulele group at Bootstrap Brewing," is stated in an email to the Longmont Observer from Caitlin Rezac.
"When people think of music, they think of Boulder and Fort Collins. But I've known all along that there's a lot of talent right here in Longmont," says Brian Rezac.
Rezac "knew it was time for Longmont to have a music festival and talking with other musicians about the event further encouraged the idea," states the email.
"We're surprised by the willingness of all the bands and solo acts to participate in the inaugural LOCOfest and help us get the idea off the ground! We've got such an amazing group of musicians in the lineup and we're grateful for their support and involvement," says Caitlin Rezac.
According to the email from Caitlin, "Everyone we've talked to about the event shares our excitement. Bootstrap Brewing was eager to host the event and local music shops jumped at the opportunity to sponsor it. Fuzz Music Studios is donating the sound equipment and Mojo Music is providing the back line."
The first LOCOfest is a family-friendly event and all ages are welcome. It is the hope of both Caitlin and Brian that, "the Longmont community will come out and support local music!"
For more information on LOCOfest or to purchase a ticket, visit their website at locomusicfest.com.
Longmont Museum Receives Grant Funding to Support Equitable Access
The following is a press release from the Longmont Museum and is published as by the Longmont Observer as a public service.
The Longmont Museum has received a grant for $20,000 from the Dodge Family Fund to support a new initiative called the Equitable Access Project. The Equitable Access Project (EAP) is designed to create opportunities for impactful art and culture encounters at the Museum for children in Boulder and Weld Counties by eliminating financial barriers. It will fully subsidized tuition for summer camps for children who qualify based on need. Starting in the fall, the grant will also provide fee-free school tours for schools with high rates of free or reduced-price lunch eligibility. This new project joins an existing camp scholarship program in place at the Museum.
“The Dodge Family Fund’s support for our Equitable Access Project ensures access for students who would otherwise be financially unable to participate in our school tours and camp programs – up to as many as 1,170 students for school tours and 70 children for summer camps,” said Ann Macca, curator of education for the Longmont Museum.
Summer camps create weeklong, welcoming learning spaces to link children ages 3 to 18 with history, art, performance, culture, science, technology, and more. Need-based eligibility for scholarships follows the MIT Living Wage Calculator.
“We know these experiences are valuable to children and families because they come back year after year. We have seen campers grow up to become teen volunteers in our camps, and even return after college to lead camps of their own and mentor younger children,” said Macca. “These experiences support learning outside of school and offer opportunities for exceptional cultural encounters with an impact that can last a lifetime.”
The EAP is timely in serving Boulder County, where trends show rapidly growing income inequality, skyrocketing housing costs, and an increasingly stark divide in the amenities and opportunities available to families based on income level.
“The Longmont Museum seeks to offer the same high-quality museum experiences to all children, regardless of economic status,” said Macca. “Thanks to this funding from the Dodge Family Fund, we will be able to take the first steps toward making that vision a reality.”
The Dodge Family Fund’s mission is to improve the chances that children in families with low incomes will succeed in school and in life through funding innovative approaches to early learning.
Although the EAP is a new pilot program, school tours and summer camps have a long, successful history at the Museum. School and teacher programs provide interactive guided tours for grades Pre-K through 5 and address Colorado Model Content Standards and 21st Century Learning and Innovation Skills, such as critical thinking and problem solving, creativity and innovation, communication and collaboration, visual literacy, scientific and numerical literacy and cross disciplinary thinking.
To learn more about the educational opportunities at the Museum and to apply for a scholarship, visit www.longmontmusuem.org or call 303-651-8374. Summer camps run now through August 3, 2018.
Full, need-based summer camp scholarships now available.
Seagate Technology Debuts PRIDE! Employee Group, Sponsors Activities in Boulder County
Seagate Technology is a sponsor of Pride activities in Boulder County, Colorado this summer. Seagate deals in data storage technology.
According to a Seagate blog, "Longmont Pride will be the debut event for Seagate’s newest employee resource group, Seagate PRIDE!. Founded in late September by a transgender Senior Engineer from Seagate’s Minnesota design center, Seagate PRIDE! is a global community of nearly 100 employees connected through the Google Plus virtual platform for resources and networking. The formation of Seagate PRIDE! inspired more than a dozen Longmont employees to start a local chapter in late April of this year."
“We had a fantastic turnout for our kickoff meeting,” said Ian Waltman, Chair of the Longmont PRIDE! chapter and an analyst in Seagate’s Business Excellence group. “We had several parents of transgender youth and a great group of allies. We also had plenty of LGBTQI individuals from a variety of business functions represented here in Longmont.”
The Longmont chapter of Seagate PRIDE! is working to make a difference in the LGBTQI community on-site and in Boulder County. "The primary goal is to support LGBTQI (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and intersex) employees and their allies, providing resources on workplace issues and networking to help employees feel a greater sense of belonging at Seagate. Creating a culture of inclusion helps spread the spirit of belonging from one diverse employee group to all employees," is stated in the blog.
“Our aim is to solidify Seagate as a leader in normalizing being openly and confidently LGBTQI in the workplace,” said Morgan Allen, Senior Engineer and Co-Chair of the Longmont PRIDE! chapter. “We want to continue fostering a welcoming atmosphere where one’s sexual orientation is a safe and comfortable topic. And in the areas where there is still stigma, we want to provide a welcoming environment to connect with, educate, and help people who are uncomfortable with the LGBTQI community, or struggling with their own sexual orientation at work.”
Seagate believes that inclusion is important because, "Seagate teams solve problems better and innovate more when they come from different backgrounds, experience and perspectives," states the blog.
Some of the ways that Seagate provides and inclusionary work environment includes:
barring harassment and discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation, gender, gender expression and gender identity, as well as numerous other diversity dimensions.
Seagate provides benefits for transgender employees
Employees can modify their names and gender in the human resource systems
Employees can designate which gender they identify with and have the option to decline to state any gender.
Seagate PRIDE! will have a booth at the Longmont Pride event on June 23.
