Dear Friends,
I’m writing about Belfast Flying Shoes (BFS) and our annual fundraising appeal. BFS’s unique nonprofit mission is to build community and cultivate well-being through the joys of traditional music and dance for people of all identities in midcoast Maine. When we stay connected, we all thrive.
Back in October, my family witnessed an extraordinary display of the aurora borealis. At the urging of our friends and neighbors, we left our comfortable living room for the yard. There, with necks craned upward, we exclaimed in incoherent wonder as fuchsia and pale green lights waved and pulsed in a celestial dance. It was awe-inspiring.
And we would have missed the aurora entirely if not for those dear friends and neighbors encouraging us to get out there and join them.
Later on, it occurred to me that the same sort of thing happens with Belfast Flying Shoes. Whether it’s an incarcerated man inviting a retired teacher to dance, or a teenager playing a fiddle tune alongside an octogenarian, helping people get out there and join in a shared experience is at the heart of all we do.
Today, we are asking you to join in and support the 5th Annual Appeal for Belfast Flying Shoes (BFS) and its participatory programs. When BFS Board President, Kay Zegel, and I were reflecting on our hopes for the Appeal, we realized that fundraising is actually quite similar to making music and dancing: sometimes challenging and exciting, often quirky and surprising, and nearly always affirming.
What’s more, music-making, dancing, and contributing are also — just as I experienced with the aurora — especially awe-inspiring when shared with other people.
BFS supporters often include brief messages with their gifts. Here’s a sample of the affirmation we’ve received this year:
- “Thank you all for your dedication & creativity in bringing traditional music & dance to our communities.”
- “Love all your programs, especially with kids in schools! Bravo!”
- “Excited to support such a worthy and important effort. As my Dad would say, ‘I don’t want to be the richest person in the cemetery.’ Dance on!”
- “Wonderful to see all the ‘joy seeds’ you’re planting with the expanding reach of BFS. Feeling that joy in the many faces smiling in your Annual Report.”
So far, 92 donors have already given $12,400 toward the 2024 Annual Appeal goal to raise $22,500 from 200 supporters. Another goal is that 60 people under the age of 40 will make a gift of $5 or more – and, all young donor gifts will be matched! (So far, 26 young donors have donated $817!) Definitely awe-inspiring and affirming!
If you want to get out there and join them, by donating too, you can:
- Mail a check to Belfast Flying Shoes, PO Box 133, Belfast, ME 04915
- Use credit, debit, or PayPal via our online payment page
- Send a Venmo payment — @belfast-flying-shoes (code 5665, if needed)
One regular contributor described how much their donation this year surprised them. They knew they wanted to increase their giving, and had settled on a certain figure. But as they began to enter the dollar amount on their donation, they reflected once more on the impact of participatory music and dance on their life. And they gave twice the amount they had planned on contributing!
We hope you, too, will consider how much you value BFS programs in your community, from our monthly dance series to our music and movement programs for incarcerated men at the Maine Coastal Regional Reentry Center, older adults in our community, and students and staff of PreK-12 schools.
One elementary school student clearly valued the BFS residency with their class. They wrote, “I love when we dance. It’s really fun and we laugh so much. You should do this dancing thing in all schools to make kids laugh and be happy.”
Humans thrive on surprise and wonder, mutual support and engagement, and most definitely on laughter and happiness. Your donation to Belfast Flying Shoes will help keep all of these awesome qualities alive in our community, for your friends and neighbors, and for you. Thank you, one and all!
On behalf of the BFS Board*,
Chrissy Fowler, BFS Executive Director
*Alessandra Martinelli, Bella Salman, Chuck Markowitz, Ethan Tischler, Kay Zegel, Mike Wright, Peg Pickering, and Sunniva Brady
