Music Fest 2014 Opens This Weekend
by Barbara Mastriania
KETTLE CREEK – The 14th annual Kettle Creek Music Fest is set for this Friday and Saturday at Quiet Oaks campgrounds. This popular event raises thousands of dollars for veterans each year.
The proceeds are given to organizations serving veterans. This year’s proceeds will be divided among three organizations that provide hunting and fishing opportunities for wounded veterans. Sharon Krauss, who helps organize the music fest each year, said they are the LEEK Hunting & Mountain Preserve program of Oswayo, PA , Hunts for Healing and Hunt of A Lifetime.
LEEK is a volunteer-run program offering hunting opportunities. It is a private hunting ground owned by the Fisher family. Krauss said the Fishers wanted to do something to show their gratitude for wounded veterans.
They developed 256 acres of hunting and fishing special trails and built special blinds that are handicap accessible. They bought special wheelchairs with tracks that can go into woods a lot easier than chairs with wheels. The chairs are expensive, about $18,000 each. One was bought by a private club, the VFW in Pittsburgh. The other was purchased with money raised by fundraising activities. Hunting areas, hunting guides and guide dogs provided to help the veterans to hunt.
When they are on a hunting outing the veterans are lodging, served home cooked meals, and partnered with local guides. Some of the young veterans who come for the hunts have never shot at anything but another person, Krauss said. This is an opportunity to use guns for sports.
The funds for the program are raised in various ways. A motorcycle club does a couple runs a year for them. Krauss said “a gentleman who heard about the music fest and that we sponsor vets called and offered us a chair to do something to raise money.” It was an Adirondack chair. Chances were sold on it.
This is the third year the LEEK will benefit from the music fest. People who want to learn more about LEEK can go to www.leekpreserve.org on line. Last year the music fest committee sent LEEK almost $3,000.
Last year the committee also chose to benefit the Marine Corps League Toys for Tots program. They raised about $2,500. In addition all the committee people donated new toys. Money was also raised by the annual Enduro race last year. People from all over the US and Canada come to the area for the race. It is sponsored by the National Motorcycle Association and publicized on television.
Also benefitting from this year’s music fest will be the Hunts for Healing, a program for veterans who have post traumatic distress syndrome. The Hunts for Healing program is in Lacyville near Scranton. It was started by a woman who was a nurse in Vietnam She suffered with post traumatic distress before finding the cause. She and her husband own a bird farm and hunting preserve for handicapped veterans. Veterans have to go through an evaluation first to make sure they can hunt. Each hunter has a mentor. Bob Wagner of Renovo, who works for Top Calls, is a mentor.
They do the hunts several times a year. They also have target shooting, small game hunting and fishing. Neighbors of the preserve have turned a house into a lodging facility for the veterans who participate in the hunts. They provide lodging, meals, hunting gear and clothing, and fishing gear. They also supply licenses, ammo and any safety gear the veterans might need. They also provide transportation if needed.
Both organizations are totally non-profit, Krauss said. They don’t take any money from the government.
The third organization the music fest is sponsoring this year is Hunts of a Lifetime, a fishing and hunting program for people under 21 with life threatening illness. The organization was started by a woman whose son Matthew had cancer. He wanted to hunt for moose. She tried Make a Wish. They don’t do hunting programs. She also tried other hunting organizations and was turned down.
The mother thought she wouldn’t be able to get a grant. Then she got a call from a village in Canada whose people had heard about her quest and wanted to grant the wish. A father and son, and an aunt who was a nurse went along on the trip. Her son did get a moose, but he died before the moose was mounted. She got a call from a woman whose son’s name also was Matthew. Her son also had cancer and wanted a hunting trip. And that’s how it started.
One case was for a boy who wanted to fish for pink trout. The only place in the world where there are pink trout is in Africa. They raised the money to provide the trip. A hunting trip can cost up to $100,000. For more information about Hunt of a Lifetime, check www.huntofalifetime.org .
About anywhere from 1,800 to 2,500 visitors attend the annual music fest. Music starts 11 a.m. following an opening ceremony on Friday. Rebecca Minihan will open the ceremony with the Star Spangled Banner. Also participating in the opening ceremony will be the Marine Corps League color guard. Five bands will present music until midnight.
Seven bands will appear Saturday. On Sunday there will be a breakfast for people who camp. Food will be for sale Fridays and Saturdays. There will be vendors; the committee tries to keep everything American made. They will also have a children’s play area.
Tickets are available at the gate – Friday, $25 per person, Saturday $20 a person. A package deal on Friday is $30. Kids 12 and under are free. Rustic camping overnight is $10 per person.
Veterans programs are chosen because they “are very important people who sacrificed for us and for children who will never get to grow up,” Krauss said. “We must take care of children and veterans. We do something with our money. It all goes out to organizations. We don’t keep any of the money. Each year we start with empty bank accounts.”
