Welcome to the Falcon Ridge Folk Festival Volunteer Website
Festival Dates: Friday July 26, Saturday July 27, and Sunday July 28, 2024
Goshen Fairgrounds, Goshen, CT
Many thanks to the FRFF volunteers for making our 2023 festival a success!
2024 Volunteer registration is now open for returning volunteers; New Volunteers can signup beginning April 1, 2024.
This is the 36th annual event.
Barbara, Paul, Pam
(203) 828-6032
volunteercoordinator@falconridgevolunteers.com
Festival Information: https://falconRidgeFolk.com
About Volunteering at FRFF
Basic Commitment
Volunteers are expected to work 18 to 20 hours at the festival usually in shifts of 3 to 4 hours. Please note that some crews require early arrival. If your schedule permits, you might want to consider one of those so you can have more free time during the festival. Please direct all questions about scheduling, arrival times, and working with specific people to your Crew Chief. Your assignment and the crew chief contact information will be in your confirmation email. Shift scheduling will be done within your crew. Verify with your crew chief if there will be a crew meeting.
Young volunteers are welcome. Children 12 and under are allowed to accompany their parents to the festival free of charge, and may work with a volunteering parent or guardian, provided that they are able to participate without interfering with their parent’s ability to work. Verify in advance with your crew chief that your child will be allowed to work with you. Do not sign children under the age of 13 up on the website unless they will be performing the full commitment of an adult volunteer. Volunteers 13 to 17 can choose to work on our Teen Crew, or another crew if they prefer.
Fees and Staff T-Shirt Purchases
We charge a nominal fee of $20 ($15 for 13-17 year olds) to volunteer, which can be paid through the website. We also ask that you purchase a staff t-shirt. It is high quality, 100% cotton, and costs $15.00, and must be ordered and paid for before the festival. Adult Sizes S through XXXL are available. If you prefer to send a check for your volunteer fee and/or t-shirt, make it out to Falcon Ridge Folk Festival and mail it to Barbara Kelemencky, 61 Chestnut Tree Hill Road, Oxford CT 06478. Be sure to include the quantities and sizes of t-shirts. We will mark it on your record online when we receive payment.
Pre-Fest and Early Volunteer Requirements
Pre-fest and Early volunteers are volunteers required to work prior to Wednesday When you arrive on site, check in with the people at the Site tent, where you will receive a pre-fest wristband giving you access to meals before the Staff dining tent opens on Thursday. If you are arriving late in the afternoon or evening, please plan to bring your own dinner and sign in to begin work in the morning.
Festival Community and Social Responsibility
Falcon Ridge Folk Festival seeks to be a living model of a thriving, inspired, diverse and sustainable community, grounded in musical enjoyment and social responsibility. We aspire to create a fun, safe and inclusive space for people to be themselves. The festival supports respectful treatment of all individuals regardless of race/ethnicity, color, national origin, sex, gender, disability, veteran status, age or any other of the qualities that make us each unique. Please stay alert to those who would take advantage of our openness, and say something to your crew chief or to security if you feel someone is mistreating you or someone else. We will listen, and when warranted, we will take appropriate action.
Volunteer Arrival
All Volunteers: The campgrounds open to everyone on Wednesday afternoon, usually around 2:00, but this may vary due to site preparation, weather or other factors. When you arrive on site, go to the Check-in area in the front gate tent. There you will receive your wristband, which gives you access to the festival, camping and meals. Check-in opens on Wednesday and will be open daily from 9:00 am til 11:00 pm. THOSE ARRIVING AFTER 11:00 PM WILL NOT BE PERMITTED BEYOND THE PARKING LOT. If you plan to arrive before Wednesday, print out a copy of your volunteer confirmation from the Crew Sign Up tab on the website to show Security.
Volunteer Meals
Breakfast and dinner are provided in the Staff Dining Tent from Thursday evening to Sunday morning. We try to offer a nice variety, including fresh fruits and vegetables so there will be something for everyone. Non vegetarian items such as breakfast meats are also offered to our volunteers. Snacks and drinks are always available. You must have a volunteer wristband to enter Staff Dining. Only designated pre-fest volunteers will be provided meals prior to Thursday night. All volunteers arriving early without job responsibilities will need to provide their own food before Thursday's dinner.
Volunteer Camping
Camping: Volunteers may camp anywhere on the site. You are required to provide your own accommodations. This can be a tent, a motel room, a camper, your car or other housing of your choice. Please leave pets at home, as they are not allowed anywhere on the festival grounds. There is a good description of the camping options on the festival website at www.falconridgefolk.com. Included below are a few pertinent excerpts:
Space is plentiful and camping is on a first-come basis; no reservations required. Trailers and campers can be accommodated but no hookups are available. Quieter camping areas are available, but are not by any means actually quiet. You are likely to be either near the noisy areas or the road, so come prepared for noise. Late night music after the Main Stage finishes is not allowed in quieter camping. The further you get from the stages, the quieter it will be.
All camping areas are a short walk (between five and fifteen minutes) to stages and the midway. Cars can be parked in designated aisles so they are anywhere from right next to your tent to a few minutes away. All of the camping areas allow volunteers to come and go as needed.
Water, port-o-lets, ice and several food concessions are all available on-site, as are 24-hour First Aid and security. Most campers bring some food, especially drinks and snacks, and buy the rest from our amazing food vendors.
You will need some camping gear; a sleeping bag, a ground cover which can simply be a plastic drop cloth, a tent, plus some warm and some cool weather clothing. This is a high elevation area in northwestern CT where days can be warm to hot but it often becomes quite chilly once the sun goes down. It can also be extremely windy. Bring layers of clothing for best efficiency.
Don't forget flashlights, bug and sun protection, rain gear and footwear, sunglasses and a hat, plus a blanket, mat or chair to sit on. If you forget these things, not to worry. There are many places in neighboring towns for groceries, restaurants and other supplies. It is only 15 minutes to Torrington CT.
Open fires are not allowed. A stove that is not directly on the ground is fine. Please, please, please do not leave anything behind when you head home.
Volunteer Signup, Status, and Contact
You can verify your volunteer status at the website www.falconridgevolunteers.com. It will say there if you have paid your fee or purchased a t-shirt. Please be sure we have a working email address and a phone number so we can reach you in case anything changes, or if we have other questions about your application. If you need to email the volunteer coordinators, please include your full name and crew in your correspondence.
As always, tell your friends. We are always looking for new volunteers. Any questions, please email the Volunteer Coordinators at volunteercoordinator@falconridgevolunteers.com. If you do not use email, you may call us at 203-828-6032 after 9:00 am and before 9:00 pm.
Thanks you from your volunteers coordinators - Pam Robinson, Barbara Getsinger Kelemencky and Paul Kelemencky.