This Sunday afternoon, August 4th, Piebird Farm Sanctuary is hosting their tenth annual Picnic Garden Concert, in Nipissing Village.
"The Piebird Picnic is a simple day of music, dancing and sharing, all in a beautiful setting," explains Sherry Milford who operates Piebird with her partner Yan Roberts.
"The Picnic started after a few years of hosting music, when one of our favourite touring bands, The Good Lovelies, grew too big for our indoor space and needed a mini-festival. Now a decade later, it’s grown into a musical event that really brings the community together in a meaningful way.”
Headlining this year’s Picnic is the roots band Mapstone, from Australia. "Mapstone are song carriers with a message of hope and unity,” explains Sherry, “it’s very participatory and joyful kind of music. Sharing in their love-filled songs together as a community really does move us towards a more vibrant and healthy existence with each other and our planet. That’s the power of positive music. Plus, the intention of what they sing about really amplifies the lifework of Piebird here, perhaps even the message of peace.”
This weekend also celebrates Piebird's fourteenth year as a hub for community and advocacy. Piebird first emerged as a vegan agri-tourism destination and in recent years grew into becoming a farm sanctuary and place of learning as well, hosting vegan cooking classes, gardening education and activism workshops.
“At the heart of what we do is to be a loving sanctuary for animal-persons and to advocate for all by being a place of education, service, and a steadfast presence of peace and justice, while living close to the Earth,” said Yan.
“This is the tenth annual Picnic, but we took a year off last year to put on a concert on Parliament Hill with this same band Mapstone, as part of an action in Ottawa. Dancing on the lawn of Parliament was significant, but bringing this event home will be wonderful. We live in a time where so much distracts and disconnects us, it’s important to cultivate the community gathering together, sharing, connecting and being uplifted."
Also playing are the beloved locals, folk-singer legend Ron Nigrini and Jennifer Plummer. “Ron is such genuinely graceful and joyful musician,” says Sherry,
"And we reconnected with Jennifer this past Winter when she wrote a powerful anthem for a local campaign to protect endangered species.”
True to the core values at Piebird, the Picnic Garden Concert is intentionally simple and intentionally small. "Arts sustainability is as important to us as as environmental sustainability," says Sherry. "The musicians are 100% audience funded rather than us getting grants or outside funding to pay them. That makes this a truly community-built experience. Plus it's in an atmosphere that can be way more intimate with the musicians than a regular concert setting, the only thing between you and the band is flowers and a few bumblebees.”
"We've been so delighted over these past fourteen years to see the community blossom and we're grateful to have our Piebird endeavours supported: growing vegetables, respecting animals, caring for the Earth, and sharing joy. The Piebird Picnic is a chance to celebrate all of that,” says Sherry. "Whether you are a new or old friend, if you've been wanting to visit Piebird or haven't been in a while, this is the perfect day to come be part of something special.”
Sunday, August 4th at Piebird Farm Sanctuary / Vegan Farmstay, 113 Chapman’s Landing Rd., Nipissing, Ontario. Gates at 12-noon, music at 1pm. For tickets or more info, see: www.piebird.org/picnic
