A Good Time for a Good Cause
When a few families in the Wet Mountain Valley of southern Colorado took note of the lack of children’s health services in the early 2000s they did what most people with the means to help might do, they donated money to the local clinic to be used by anyone who needed financial assistance. A year later they found that most of the money remained unused and got a very clear message that the folks in the community did not like the idea of charity. What happened next was the birth of a bluegrass festival where the community could come together and raise money for children’s health care and for the past twenty plus years, since the first festival in 2003, High Mountain Hay Fever, a 2024 nominee for IBMA’s Event of the Year, has raised over $900,000 for children’s health needs in Custer County, Colorado.
Over the years the support for children’s health has evolved from donating to the local clinic to the creation of the High Mountain Hay Fever Children’s Health Fund which now supports a variety of projects and services in the community from physical and mental health to dental as well as supporting sports, dance, music and arts, truly looking at children’s health in a holistic way. The Fund receives applications during the year and awards as many grants as possible.
The festival and the health fund are registered non-profit organizations and rely on a dedicated core of volunteers, many of whom have been there since the beginning.
One of the people involved with this project from the start is Ron Thomason. He tells the story of the decision to create a festival, “The other folks involved with this project said ‘You know how to have a Bluegrass festival’ and I thought, well, I knew how to be at a Bluegrass festival and could read the word if I saw it.” Actually Thomason had more than just some experience with festivals having been involved with the Winterhawk festival which eventually became Grey Fox, not to mention his years of playing Bluegrass with Ralph Stanley and many others as well as over forty years leading Dry Branch Fire Squad.
Thomason is quick to credit Dr. Ralph Stanley’s open minded attitude about music and desire to use diverse influences as something that shapes his work in programing High Mountain Hay Fever. Over the years the attendees at the festival have seen artists ranging from The Kody Norris Show to Chris Jones and the Night Drivers, Fog Holler to Ralph Stanley 2, Kaia Kater to Jim Lauderdale and anything and everything in between. The audience has listened and danced to Black string band music from The Ebony Hillbillies and laughed with The Moron Brothers. Those who choose to label musical styles would find Bluegrass, Folk, Americana, Singer-Songwriter, Country, Folk-Rock among the sounds that emanate from the stage.
Much of what brings people back year after year is that diversity. Board member Heidi Clare notes that “Often bands who were hesitant to come to the festival have such a great experience they’re coming up to me before the weekend is over wanting to know when they can come back again because the audience is so great, and why are they so great? It’s because Ron has trained them, you don’t need to know the bands that are playing, you just need to come and open your brain.”
That diversity of performers is noted by bands playing the festival as well. Mike Mitchell says “The variety of the performers had us in the audience more than at any other festival, we wanted to hear all the diverse artists, we were fans and audience members as much as we were performers. We were engaged the whole time, we didn’t know what was coming next.”
Jason Hicks, of Colorado’s Blue Canyon Boys had this to say, High Mountain Hay Fever is seriously one of our favorite festivals to play. With the Sangre De Cristo mountains hovering in the background, it is one of the best stage backdrops in the world. Ron Thomasson always compiles a stellar and thoughtful lineup of bands/musicians and HMHF one of the most appreciative and attentive audiences of all Colorado festivals! We are always thrilled to be a part of the lineup!”
With bands playing two or three sets over there weekend you might even hear some of that diversity from one band. When The Hillbenders, who had just recorded their Bluegrass version of Tommy, played they did one set dedicated to that project, another one of progressive originals and one set of hard core traditional Bluegrass around a single mic. Bringing in bands that will appeal to a wider range of listeners than the regular traditional Bluegrass fans is part of the vision to enlarge the overall audience for the genre.
Many have cited the range of new performers and new sounds alongside the favorite elements that return every year as a reason they come back to Westcliffe, CO year after year. Among the expected traditions are the Sunday morning gospel set with host band Dry Branch Fire Squad, Ron Thomason’s stories and of course the view from the festival grounds.
You could probably fill a book with band photos taken behind the stage looking out at the Sangre de Cristo range of the Rocky Mountains. It’s not uncommon to find a number of festival attendees sitting outside the MainStage tent area taking in the view while listening to the music, especially as the sun begins to set over the mountain range. The natural beauty doesn’t end when the sun goes down, Westcliffe, CO being a designated international dark sky community, features a stunning view of the night sky. The town has the highest elevation of any designated dark sky community in the world so the views of the Milky Way are unique to say the least.
Another of the regular elements of the festival is the High Mountain Hayseeds program for kids lead by Heidi Clare. “That’s something I never would thought of, involving the kids along with their parents at the festival” says Thomason. Heidi and helpers meet with the kids every morning and using ukuleles, which kids can sign out for the weekend to practice learn several songs to perform on the main stage as well as impromptu “pop up concerts” throughout the weekend. More than an activity to occupy the children’s time, the Hayseeds make the kids part of the festival. The kids take playing on stage to close out the festival on Sunday afternoon seriously. One performer who’s child was a part of the Hayseeds program said that his son told him that he was “going to take a nap because he had a gig that afternoon.”
According to Thomason, one of the reasons for the continued success of the festival is the Board of Directors who work so well together. “ Everyone has their own area of expertise and everyone trusts each other to do the work.” That sentiment is echoed by Board member Dana Diehl who extends that idea of cooperation to the performers and the audience saying “When you’re here at the festival, you’re a partner in the work we’re doing in the community.” The mission of the festival, supporting children’s health, makes High Mountain Hay Fever something special. There’s an enthusiasm that is more than just the excitement of seeing great performers. Valerie Smith, who has played the festival several times says “Kindness and enthusiasm are abundant among friends, musicians, and festival staff at the High Mountain Fever Festival, making it a must-attend event.”
Looking ahead, the festival will continue with their slogan “Small Scale, Big Time” which is a pretty accurate description of the event in the very small town of Westcliffe, CO bringing in internationally known artists and presenting the music in an intimate setting, that also features unparalleled views of the Rocky Mountains. That said, Ron Thomason indicates that they’re always looking at ways to improve the experience. “We’re finding out we can handle more people than we thought, so maybe we will bring in some bigger names.” However the festival grows and evolves, Thomason’s mission to challenge and excite the listeners while expanding the notion of what works at a Bluegrass festival will remain a driving force and the support for children’s health will always be the reason the volunteers work so hard every year to create this singular event. As Board member Dana Diehl says “It’s a good time for a good cause.”
