Page 71 - Blues Festival Guide Magazine 2015

That night, as spouts of flames erupted on the horizon, to Winthrop’s Red Barn for Blues for the Burn, which raised
emcee Anita White, better known as "Lady A" who is a thousands to help the community rebuild.
raucous fundraiser for The Cove Foodbank in Twisp, worked The help was badly needed. Many residents had been out
the crowd harder than ever, passing a bucket through the of work for more than a week while the area had been without
crowd again and again, asking fans to help those who were power. Some had lost homes.
losing everything. Olsen thought the festival could do more. “We had people who needed help with utilities, gas
“I went to the Red Cross in the middle of the night, and said, vouchers, rentals, and we had more than 60 families come in for
‘Let people know they can come here and get a shower and a help with bills they couldn’t pay, because of the lack of work,”
meal,’” she said. Within 24 hours, more than 100 fire refugees said Glenn Schmekel, Director of The Cove. “A lot of people
had made their way to the festival grounds. had lost all the food in their houses when the refrigerators and
“They were coming to the beer garden, talking about the freezers went off. We paid to help people get their food back.”
fire, and happy to have a place to camp,” said Olsen. “Some Blues for the Burn attracted a standing-room-only crowd of
didn’t know if they still had houses.” more than 400. Music fans responded to the need, listening to
Beyond a shower, a hot meal and a place to camp, the Too Slim and the Taildraggers, Honey and the Killer Beez, Greg
festival provided emotional relief, said Brook Robin Berhle, a Hardy and Fred Cooley, and donated what they could.
Twisp resident and longtime festival attendee. She headed to “It was so awesome to see that benefit,” Behrle said. “It
the festival along with displaced neighbors, many of whom brought out the best of everyone, to get together, and put in
didn’t know if their homes would still be standing when they our energy for the people who had to go through a major life
returned. change.”
“Dancing is a good release,” said Berhle. “That’s why I “We raised about $12,000 at Blues for the Burn,” said
thought the festival was beneficial to people. Just for a while, Smith. “That, with about $8,000 that fans gave in the beer
for a song, you could forget all the trouble. You could dance. garden, is about $20,000. And with what the bands gave, the
You could be merry for a minute.” festival probably collected $25,000 for fire victims.”
Even the entertainers pitched in: Charlie Musselwhite The festival also took a financial blow, but it will survive,
donated $1,000 of his performance fee, guest keyboardist Jim said Smith. Attendance was down about 30 percent, and
Pugh donated a portion of his fee, and Carolyn Wonderland although the numbers aren’t calculated yet, festival losses could
canceled her appearance but gave anyway. Too Slim and the reach $30,000. However, the nonprofit festival has been
Taildraggers did even more. saving money to prepare for disasters like this one, and is still
The band, who drove a harrowing, roundabout route from solvent, he said.
the east through the fire zones to arrive, has performed at the “We couldn’t take too many hits like this,” he said. “But we
festival each year but one. will survive this one.”
They offered to come back and play again at the end of This year’s festival is July 17-19.
August to support a benefit for fire victims. Erika Olsen and Bringing the festival through the weekend was the single
Jimmy Smith volunteered to organize it. On August 29, 2014, hardest thing, outside of giving birth to her daughter, that she
Too Slim and the Taildraggers and other musicians, as well has ever done, said Erika Olsen. But when it was over, there
as several hundred blues fans and locals, made their way was a sense of accomplishment.

The Carlton Complex Fire ominously burned near the Winthrop Rhythm & Blues Festival The Homemade Jamz Blues Band redefined the term “smoking set” at the 2014
Photo by Andy Cotton Winthrop Rhythm & Blues Festival in Washington Photo by Jill Sonsteby

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