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We'd like to thank all the volunteers and staff that made this festival possible. Hats off! to the many hours that people generously donated. And a special Thank You! to the folks at Taco Taxi for loaning the stage crew power from their portable generator after not one, but two power generators failed.
The Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board, and the Nokomis East Neighborhood Association, wwill return in 2013 with the Minneapolis Monarch Festival at the Nokomis Naturescape on September 7. Last year's Festival featured an exciting stage line up, and we expect an excellent lineup this year. We last year's stage with Tejano 2000 and the Mark Stillman Band ("Border Crossings," or North meets South in dueling bands), The rest of the day included KetzalCoatlicue Aztec Dance Group, Larry Long with special guest, Fiddlin' Pete (American Folk), Javier Trejo and his band (Mexican & American Rock), Peña (Afro/Peruvian), Cyril Paul & the Calypso Monarchs (Calypso, Reggae) and K-Libre 24 (Salsa). Art Activities included printmaking by steamroller (really!) with ArtOrg and Grupo Soap del Corazon, and creating a collage with Artsy Smartsy, among others. There were monarch butterflies of course. We had hoped for about 400 butterflies that the U of Minnesota’s Monarch Lab was raising. Unfortunately a disease decimated the population. Still, about 40 butterflies were released to begin their amazing 2,300 mile migration from Minnesota to the mountains of Michoacán Mexico where they spent the winter. Everything from food, to music and art highlights the Minnesota - Mexico connection that the Monarch butterfly creates. The Kids Butterfly Fun Runs, were incredibly popular, with age-bracketed races for children ages 0 – 11. In 2012, the Run was sponsored by Univision TV and U Care. For the younger kids, there were prizes awarded for the best monarch costumes. Older kids competed for 1st, 2nd and 3rd place finish. Winners were announced and invited onto the stage after the races. Food was available from six vendors and one food truck. The roasted corn--new to the Festival--was a hit. The Festival takes place alongside the Nokomis Naturescape, comprised of a variety of native grass and wildflower gardens which have been certified as a Monarch Waystation. The gardens contain annual and perennial plants that provide habitat and food sources that are essential to the survival of monarch butterflies. We will post more information about the Festival as plans are confirmed. We look forward to seeing many of you back in 2013, and hope that many more of you who haven’t yet been to this unique and incredibly fun festival will join us on September 7. For more information or to become involved as a vendor or exhibitor, contact:
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© 2012 Nokomis East Neighborhood Association, Inc. All rights reserved. Webmaster
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hank you all for attending the 2012 Festival. It was a great day, and we hope you all enjoyed the festivities, music, food and of course, the beautiful Lake Nokomis Naturescape setting and the amazing Monarchs.
