The First Annual Irish Festival will be held this upcoming Saturday July 26, 2008 from 10:00 AM until 10:00 PM at World's Fair Park in Knoxville. Click HERE for directions. Tickets for Adults are $10 and can be purchased at the gate; Children are FREE! The festival will be a celebration of the continuing contributions the Irish community has been making since the earliest days of European settlement in East Tennessee. The stated mission of the festival is:
The mission of the Irish Festival of Knoxville, Inc. is to educate the community of East Tennessee of the Irish heritage of this region, with educational ties to environmental practices as a zero-waste festival, while raising funds for designated worthy public service agencies and charities.
An exciting aspect of this festival will be its stated goal to be zero waste and carbon-neutral! The organizers are using the traditional practice of carbon offsetting through the purchase of clean energy such as wind, farm animal wastes, and landfill gases. The festival organizers go beyond this carbon offsetting by incorporating community education on lifestyle changes that can reduce carbon emissions.
The Irish community has a long history of supporting police officers and firefighters. This event will carry on that support as the proceeds will benefit five very worthy organizations:
Knoxville Firefighters Association
Fraternal Order Police Volunteer Lodge #2
Knoxville Volunteer Rescue Squad
Remote Area Medical Foundation
The Ulster Project - The Ulster Project International Website
There will be a Kids Zone with all the fun diversions you would expect, a moon walk, a fun slide, face painting, arts and crafts, and camel rides! As children are free what better way to spend an afternoon. There will also be a multitude of vendors exhibiting and selling traditional Irish crafts, and environmental organizations promoting "green living." In addition to the Kids Zone and the vendors, there two distinct areas that will have entertainment:
Performance Lawn Stage
Market Stage
10:00 - 11:00 Heart of Oak Band - Irish Ballads
11:15 - 11:45 Irish Dancers
12:00 - 12:45 SECC Cloggers
3:30 - 4:30 Irish Dancers - Four Leaf Peat Band - Traditional Irish
6:00 - 7:00 Shamrock Road Band - Irish Ballads
Main Stage
1:00 - 2:00 Opening Ceremony
2:15 - 3:15 Lahinch Mob Band - Irish Rock 'n Roll
4:30 - 6:00 Chill Billies Band - Southern Rock 'n Roll
7:00 - 8:00 Soul Water Band - Southern Rock Blues
8:15 - 9:15 Lahinch Mob Band - Irish Rock 'n Roll
9:30 - 10:00 Grand Finale
Amphitheater Schedule
9:00 - 10:00 CPR
10:00 - 11:00 Fairytale Photography
11:00 - 12:00 Safe Kids Coalition
12:00 - 12:15 Ijams Nature Center
12:15 - 1:00 Festival Charities
2:15 - 2:45 Earthborn Products Co.
2:45 - 3:15 City of Knoxville
3:15 - 3:45 Knoxville Recycling Coalition
3:45 - 4:15 Tennessee Valley Earth Partnership
4:15 - 4:45 East Tennessee Clean Fuels Coalition
4:45 - 5:15 Knoxville Police - K-9 Demo
As part of this festival there will also be a semi-formal Green Tie Event on Friday the 25th. This event is $75 per ticket with all proceeds benefiting the five charities. This event will be held from 8:00 PM until 11:00 PM in the Sunsphere at World's Fair Park. The event will feature a live Irish band, heavy hors d'oeuvres, wine and beer, and door prizes. If you are interested in attending this event, click HERE to download the invitation in pdf format!
This is the first of what is planned to be an annual event! If you are in the Knoxville area on the 26th and would like a day of fun and diversion, check out the Irish Festival! It is a green event!
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