Foxfire is not the same as the Foxfire of yesteryear—staff members have come and gone and programs have changed—but during all of the organizational changes over its forty-five-year history, one thing has remained constant: our belief in young people and their ability to have an active hand in their own learning by immersing themselves in their community. Just as my grandparents and parents inspired and influenced me as I grew up here, so have Foxfire’s contacts, whom you’ve read so much about in the magazine and books. Determination, perseverance, and life skills have become ingrained in me through the values I learned from all my elders; these are values that you have heard the Foxfire students talk about throughout their years with Foxfire, while they, at the same time, learned the skills they needed to be active, critical citizens in their communities and workplace. As Aunt Addie Norton so eloquently shared with them:
I tell you one thing: If you learn it by yourself, if you have to get down and dig for it, it never leaves you. It stays there as long as you live because you had to dig it out of the mud before you learned what it was.
Through this teacher-learner-community connection, the students not only learned those life lessons from their elders like Aunt Addie while learning about their culture and heritage, they also:
preserved a part of that culture for future generations;
learned interpersonal, communication, and publishing skills;
came to value the importance of family and community;
learned many traditional hands-on skills that they would use throughout their lives; and
learned important lessons on persevering through hardships and difficulties in life.
Little did our students know that while documenting this vanishing way of life, they were also developing a teaching style, the Foxfire Approach to Teaching and Learning, that would be refined by thousands of teachers around the country as they used those core practices to teach their own students in a fulfilling and meaningful way.
The students also learned respect for their elders and that those elders have so much to share with younger generations that matters, if only given a chance to share their wealth of knowledge, for as our elders share stories of the past, they provide insight into history yet to be made. That teacher-learner-community connection and the history of the Appalachian area are what we hope to continue to share with generations to come here at The Foxfire Museum and Heritage Center.
We do continue to make a difference every day through our educational programs, as evidenced by many e-mails and letters we receive each day, including the following from former student Chris Crawford in New Jersey:
The year after high school was a tough one for me.…I fell back on the skills I developed with Foxfire: “construction.” Yes, I became a heavy construction worker.…I got the job at the company I’m at now and I love it. I am a foreman/heavy equipment operator, and we install natural gas and water pipelines. Between all of that, my kids grew up and one graduated high school last year. Both are attending a community college; [one] being in his second year is gearing up to be a teacher and [the other] wants to do the culinary arts … what a beautiful family I am blessed with. In closing, I owe so much to you [Ann] and all the teachers at Foxfire. You were the family I was blessed with through my youth [that] guided me through my troubled times. The guidance I will continue to use throughout my lifetime, and the memories will warm my heart forever.…I know if it weren’t for Foxfire, things would be different for me. I understand the changes [in Foxfire], but I was given a chance to take classes in 7th grade and was hired for the summer maintenance program [several years].…I laugh because I don’t think there was a Foxfire class I didn’t take in high school. I know I wasn’t the ideal student, but if it wasn’t for Foxfire’s approach to teaching, I would have been lost in the so-called “Text Book” rules of teaching and been pushed through the system as an “under-the-rug” statistic with a lost education. So, when asked about high school, I always explain to friends how lucky I was to have Foxfire and what it was. If you could major in anything in high school, I would say I “Majored in Foxfire!” THANK YOU!
The work product of some of those students, The Foxfire Museum and Heritage Center in Mountain City, still thrives today. Built by the hands of Foxfire students like Chris, with adult supervision, the museum, a collection of twenty-two historic and replication log structures, provides rich educational programs steeped in the Appalachian culture. Living History Days are conducted each year on a Friday and Saturday in April, with hundreds of visitors learning about life in the early 1800s through Foxfire volunteers on-site at the museum, dressed in period clothing, demonstrating the skills of the era. Preachin’ and traditional music can be heard throughout the hills from the chapel; ladies will be quiltin’, churnin’, makin’ soap, weavin’, and cookin’ over the open hearth, while the men are hewin’ logs and blacksmithing and doing intricate woodworkin’. At the same time, children will be learning lessons on the old slate boards in the one-room schoolhouse, the chapel that served as both school and a place of worship, or playing old-timey games on the grounds, or making a piece of rope on the old rope maker.
Children’s Heritage Days are also conducted throughout the summer months; Foxfire Magazine students are on-site in leadership training courses or writing books such as this one; the magazine is in continuous publication at Rabun County High School, with the full support of principal Mark Earnest and two great classroom facilitators; an archive of historical significance for the region now exists and is available to the public as a result of that oral history collection by our students; guided and self-guided educational tours are provided to thousands of visitors each year, including school and home-school groups, individuals, clubs, and families; teacher-training courses in The Foxfire Approach to Teaching and Learning are held on-site each summer, conducted by our partners in education at Piedmont College; $25,000 in college scholarships is awarded annually to local Rabun County students in the Foxfire program, with over $850,000 having been awarded since 1976; a strategic plan is in place, governed by our board of directors; and my dream of having a year-round, active Living History Center is still alive.
Thanks to my great staff who help me to accomplish all of Foxfire’s established goals and more, the leadership from our caring board of directors, the advice and assistance of our community board members, current and former students, and other volunteers who assist us each and every year, as well as our generous financial contributors, Foxfire continues to flourish and, like its namesake, foxfire, the luminous fungus that glows on decaying wood in these beautiful Appalachian Mountains, so does the glow of our Foxfire organization continue to shine!
With sincere love and gratitude, I dedicate this book to my mom and to those wonderful contacts who invited our young students into their homes and shared their stories, for had they not welcomed us with open arms into their lives, this wonderful educational organization called Foxfire would not exist today.
Experiencing Traditional Music in the Southeastern United States
To explore the world of gospel music, you need look no further than local churches to be presented with a wealth of opportunities. Ask around the community, and folks should be able to point you in the direction of notably musical worship services or churches that are known for hosting traveling gospel groups for special singings.
In the southeastern United States, good bluegrass music is fairly easy to locate. The list on the following pages is just a sampling of bluegrass festivals in the region, included here to help you find your way through the door of the bluegrass world. The festival listings here are based on information available while this book was in production in 2010–11. We hope that each and every one of these festivals are still being held when you read this, but please understand that websites, dates, and locations may have changed. Don’t worry, though—once you’ve met a few people, searched the Internet a bit, and visited a festival or two, you should have no problem locating even more possibilities, both c
lose to home and at family-vacation-worthy destinations.
~ALABAMA~
Great American Bluegrass Festival
April, Dothan
www.greatamericanbluegrassfestival.com
Tennessee Valley Old Time Fiddlers Convention
October, Athens
www.athens.edu/fiddlers
Foggy Hollow Bluegrass Gatherin’
June and September, Webster’s Chapel
www.foggyhollow.com
Ol’ Timey Crafts and Bluegrass Festival
September, Estillfork
www.prvlodge.com
Chimney Corner Celebration
October, St. Clair Springs
www.whitesmtnbluegrass.com
~FLORIDA~
Bluegrass and Clogging Festival
March, Auburndale
www.intlmarketworld.com
Dixieland Music Park
November, Waldo
www.dixielandmusicpark.net
Everglades Bluegrass Festival
February, Miami
www.southfloridabluegrass.org
MagnoliaFest
October, Live Oak
www.magnoliafest.com
Palatka Bluegrass Festival
February, Palatka
www.aandabluegrass.com/FestivalListing.html
Riverhawk Music Festival
November, Brooksville
www.lindentertainment.com
Suwannee Springfest
March, Live Oak
suwanneespringfest.com
Yeehaw Junction Bluegrass Festival
January, Yeehaw Junction
www.yeehawbluegrass.com
~GEORGIA~
Bear on the Square Mountain Festival
April, Dahlonega
www.bearonthesquare.org
Blairsville Bluegrass Festival
September, Blairsville
www.unioncountyhistory.org
Dillard Bluegrass and Barbecue Festival
August, Dillard
www.dillardbbq.com
Foxfire Mountaineer Festival
October, Clayton
www.foxfiremountaineer.org
Georgia Official State Fiddlers’ Convention
October, Hiawassee
www.georgiamountainfairgrounds.com
Hillside Spring Bluegrass Festival
May, Cochran
www.hillsidebluegrassrvpark.com
New Year’s Bluegrass Festival
December, Jekyll Island
www.aandabluegrass.com/FestivalListing.html
Top of Georgia Bluegrass Jamboree
March, Dillard
www.gabluegrassjamboree.com
~KENTUCKY~
Bluegrass in the Park Folklife Festival
August, Henderson
www.bluegrassintheparkfestival.com
Carter County Shrine Club Bluegrass Festival
July, Olive Hill
www.cartercountyshrineclub.org
Festival of the Bluegrass
June, Lexington
www.festivalofthebluegrass.com
Goin’ Back to Harlan Bluegrass Festival
June, Harlan
www.harlanbgfestival.com
GrassStock
August, Harrodsburg
www.grassstock.com
Jerusalem Ridge Bluegrass Celebration
September, Beaver Dam
www.jerusalemridgefestival.org
Crowe Fest
September, Wilmore
www.jdcrowefestival.com
Newgrass Festival
August, Bowling Green
www.newgrassfestival.com
Poppy Mountain Bluegrass Festival
September, Morehead
www.poppymountainbluegrass.com
River of Music Party (ROMP)
June, Owensboro
www.bluegrassmuseum.org/general/romp.php
Rudy Fest Bluegrass Festival
June, Grayson
www.rudyfest.com
Sally Gap Bluegrass Festival
June, Williamsburg
www.sallygapbgfestival.com
Salt Lick Bluegrass Festival
February, Shepherdsville
www.saltlickbluegrassfestival.com
Vine Grove Bluegrass Festival
September, Vine Grove
www.vinegrovebluegrass.com
~NORTH CAROLINA~
Big Lick Bluegrass Festival
June, Oakboro
www.biglickbluegrass.com
Black Banjo Gathering
March, Boone
www.blackbanjo.com
Bluegrass First Class
February, Asheville
www.bluegrassfirstclass.com
Charlie Poole Music Festival
June, Eden
www.charlie-poole.com
High Country Musicfest
August, Boone
www.highcountrybluegrassfestival.com
Hoppin’ John Old-Time and Bluegrass Fiddler’s Convention
September, Silk Hope
www.hoppinjohn.org
Kinston Winter Bluegrass Festival
February, Kinston
www.ibluegrass.com/kinstonbg
Lil John’s Mountain Music Festival
May, Snow Camp
www.littlejohnsmountainmusic.com
MerleFest
April, Wilkesboro
www.merlefest.org
North Carolina State Bluegrass Festival
August, Marion
www.aandabluegrass.com/FestivalListing.html
Ola Belle Reed Music Festival
August, Lansing
www.olabellefest.com
Fiddler’s Grove Ole Time Fiddler’s and Bluegrass Festival
May, Union Grove
www.fiddlersgrove.com
Red, White and Bluegrass Festival
July, Morganton
www.redwhiteandbluegrassfestival.com
Shakori Hills GrassRoots Festival of Music and Dance
April and October, Pittsboro
www.shakorihills.org
~SOUTH CAROLINA~
Aiken Bluegrass Festival
May, Aiken
www.aikenbluegrassfestival.org
Congaree Bluegrass Festival
October, Cayce
www.congareebluegrassfestival.com
RenoFest Bluegrass Festival
March, Hartsville
www.renofest.com
South Carolina State Bluegrass Festival
November, Myrtle Beach
www.aandabluegrass.com/FestivalListing.html
~TENNESSEE~
Americana Music Festival
October, Nashville
www.americanamusic.com
Boxcar Pinion Memorial Bluegrass Festival
May, Chattanooga
www.boxcarforeverbluegrass.com
Dumplin Valley Bluegrass Festival
September, Kodak
www.dumplinvalleybluegrass.com
World of Bluegrass
October, Nashville
www.ibma.org
Raccoon Valley Bluegrass Festival
October, Powell
www.raccoonvalleyfestival.com
Pigeon Forge Winterfest
December, Pigeon Forge
www.smokymountainwinterfest.com
3 Sisters Festival
October, Chattanooga
www.3sistersbluegrass.com
Uncle Dave Macon Days
July, Murfreesboro
www.uncledavemacondays.com
Union Bluegrass Festival
October, Farragut
www.unioncpchurch.com/bluegrass
White Oak Mountain Bluegrass Festival
July, Cleveland
www.whiteoakbluegrass.com
~VIRGINIA~
Bluegrass in the Blue Ridge
August, Luray
www.bluegrassinluray.com
Central Virginia Family Bluegrass Music Festival
May, Am
elia
www.ameliafamilycampground.com
Clinch Mountain Music Fest
June, Gate City
www.clinchfest.net
Graves Mountain Festival of Music
June, Syria
www.gravesmountain.com/bluegrass.htm
Menokin Bluegrass Festival
May, Warsaw
www.menokinbluegrass.com
Mineral Bluegrass Festival
July, Mineral
www.aandabluegrass.com/FestivalListing.html
Oak Grove Folk Music Festival
August, Staunton
www.oakgrovefestival.com
Roanoke FiddleFest
July, Roanoke
www.roanokefiddlefest.org
~WEST VIRGINIA~
Appalachian String Band Music Festival
August, Clifftop
www.wvculture.org/stringband
Pickin’ in the Panhandle
September, Martinsburg
www.panhandlepickin.com
The Foxfire 45th Anniversary Book
Singin’, Praisin’, Raisin’
The Foxfire 45th Anniversary Book Page 58