Lesbians, gay ladies, queer gals and assorted and diverse other friends rocked out at the "Four Months to Michfest" party April 17 at the Holiday Club. DJ All the Way Kay provided tunes for the packed room while partiers danced; enjoyed free hors d'oeuvres; swapped Michfest stories; networked for rideshares and gear exchanges; and flirted.
They also enthusiastically participated in a raffle designed to raise funds for at least five full scholarships to send low-income women to the festival in August. Raffle items included Michigan swag donated by the festival, concert tickets, massage services, goods from Dykes in the City ( DITC ) and toys from The Pleasure Chest.
A multigenerational and multicultural group of women who are encouraging women to attend the 35th anniversary of the Michigan Womyn's Music Festival planned Saturday's event.
Suzanne Blum-Grundyson, Nikki Cutler, Alma Izquierdo, Pat McCombs, Brenda Schumacher, Jenae Williams and Sherry Wright want lapsed veterans, FestiVirgins and everyone in between to gather on the land Aug. 3-8 outside Walhala, Mich.
Blum-Grundyson travels to the festival for "the community that refreshes and restores my balance and keeps me sustained throughout the year." The special education teacher really enjoys the feeling of safety while on the land.
Izquierdo is a FestiVirgin who will finally succumb this year to the many Michigan stories she's heard. The massage therapist is "very excited and hoping to get a few more FestiVirgins to go."
Sherry Wright was expecting more of a "meat-marketish" atmosphere when she attended for the first time in 2008. However, the union organizer loved the feeling of safety and spirituality in addition to "the amazing food, the artist/vendors, the family friendliness" and of course, the music.
"I will come back every year of my life because Michfest is the most magical, life affirming, recharging, epic fun spiritual and creatively charged place I have ever been," said Schumacher, a marketer and music producer who has been attending since she was in her 20s.
Nikki Cutler doesn't just attend to sell her DITC clothing among the craftswomyn, but for the sense of possibility. It's "a land where you can forget about your life for a week and be any person you want. Any self, any fantasy can be lived."
Activist and retired school teacher McCombs, who organizes Womyn of Color, has gone for 32 years for "a sense of freedom I have never experienced as a lesbian. The lesbian culture, the music, the spiritual land, the womyn, the womyn, the womyn…."
Despite her supercharged modern lifestyle and initial concern regarding the Michigan staples of vegetarian meals, camping and Port-A-Janes, nightclub promoter Jenae Williams will "never look back" from her maiden voyage to Michigan in 2009. "This kind of energy, these kind of womyn, this is what gives me hope for the future and solace with my community," she said.
Ticket information and details on workshops and music performances for the 2010 festival are at www.michfest.com .