Springfield Celtic Festival

June 27, 2007

Springfield Township Recreation Area—located in Kalkaska County near Fife Lake—will host its second annual Celtic Festival this Saturday, June 30. The day will feature traditional Highland (Scottish) Heavy Athletics, food, Celtic music and dancing. The catch is that everything is free, including the food.
“We started this Springfield Recreation Area a few years back with the philosophy that all the events here would be free to the public,” Jeff White, park board chairman. “We wanted to create a place for families to come and gather and not have to shell out a bunch of money.”
The Springfield Recreation Area was created when the DNR wanted to close off access to state land because of an issue with people dumping trash.
“People were outraged,” said Laura White, Jeff’s sister and founder of the Springfield Celtic Festival. “So we got together and made a deal with the DNR that if we kept the area clean they wouldn’t shut it down.”
Jeff White says a total community effort of individuals and businesses have donated time and money that has led to a lookout platform, pavilion and playground being built.
“Plus, we have kept our end of the bargain up with the DNR and have cleaned up 80 miles of the Manistee River and 4,600 acres of parkland,” said White. “In all, we have hauled out more than 250 tons of junk. The first clean-up resulted in 15 garbage trucks and five construction dumpsters full of stuff.”

EXTRAVAGANZA
White, a musician himself, has put a focus on music at the recreation area. A few weeks back he hosted what he hopes will be an annual music extravaganza.
“We started with traditional country and finished with heavy metal. We had blues, country, classic rock and modern rock in between,” said White. “It was a huge success.”
The idea of a Celtic festival came from his sister Laura, who had been traveling to Alma and Detroit for festivals and thought it would be nicer to have a festival close
to home.
“I am of Irish and Scottish descent and so are a lot of others around here, so I felt a festival that celebrated our heritage would be popular,” said Laura White. “The first year proved we were right.”
She points out that while the music is popular, watching the athletic competitions is equally so.
“The Scottish Heavy Games was devel-oped around the 12th century as a way for the Scots to train for war without the British realizing that is what they were doing,” said Laura White. “We have competitors coming in from all over the Midwest, including a group from Charlevoix.  We have all the traditional events and yes, the competitors must don the traditional kilt.”

HEAVY LIFTING
Scottish Heavy Athletics include stone-throwing, weight tossing, hammer-throwing, caber turning (18 foot long 150 lb telephone pole looking log), and sheaf tossing.
The day also features Irish dancers and lots of music. Several local bands will perform and some of the musical highlights of the day include the popular Midland Highlanders, a group of bagpipers. Celtic rockers, The Lash, from Wisconsin will headline the evening.
“The bands have been great; they have been agreeing to play for half of what they normally charge,” said White. “Plus, a lot of businesses have stepped up as sponsors.”
So, in tight budget times how is it that the Springfield Township Park Board is able to operate events and activities free of charge to the public?
“Look, if we charged five or 10 bucks, people might not show up. Especially if it is something they are not sure about,” said White. “But offer free food and keep everything else free and the only cost for the family is the gas to get there. Once they get there and have a good time most make a donation. We have donation cans and sure, you get the guy who eats 10 sloppy joes and leaves nothing, but we are getting people leaving $50 and $100 bills.”
For Springfield Recreation Area, the concept has been working.
“We have been recognized by the State of Michigan; our concept is pretty innovative,” said White. “Look, this land belongs to the people; every time you turn around people are trying to charge you to do something. So like I said, as long as I am the chairman, things are going to be free or at least 90% free. We do sell some event shirts, we also have vendors, but all that stuff is optional.”

BIG TURNOUT
Both Whites see this year’s Springfield Celtic Festival doubling in attendance with 2,500 coming out. The park board will host their annual bluegrass festival July 28 and White says everyone is welcome to get a sneak peak during their Thursday night farmers market held at the Springfield Recreation Area.
“We have been honored by the Department of Agriculture for our farmers market because there isn’t another one like it in the state,” said White. “We have musicians down there each week. People bring food to share, sort of like a potluck. People come out and get together and even some of the vendors prepare food to share. When the corn is in season we have a free corn boil every Thursday. My bluegrass band, Straight Forward Bluegrass, plays there every third Thursday.”
White and his fellow board members have no visions of slowing down. They are looking at an international dog sled festival and race with more than 200 competitors.
“We have been working on this one for three years and hope to have it in place by 2009,” said White. “We also will have three bobsled runs this winter, it is a great sledding area (after a young girl died sledding last winter the board is looking to make the area safer) and we are going to have these runs that will keep everyone safe.”
But winter is a ways off -- the focus now is all Celtic and bluegrass for the coming weeks. To learn more about the Springfield Celtic Festival, contact Jeff White at (231) 369-2685. The June 30 event begins at 10 a.m. and goes to 10 p.m.

How to get there: Springfield Township Recreation Area and Eagle Ridge overlooks the Manistee River in Springfield Township. go sledding down a great hill, or skate on the ice rink in winter. There are 40 acres bordered by state land. You can cross-country ski, warm up in the pavilion, during the warmer months play on the playground, hike the trails and have a picnic. From Kalkaska take M66 south 13 miles south to Lund Road. Turn right (west) and go 4 miles to Creighton Road. Turn left into the Springfield Recreation Area. There is a pavilion area about 1/4 mile from the entrance.