Letter from Mary Jo Sartain – Mayfest Festival Chair
Oh, my! It’s mid-April! Which means that Mayfest is literally just around the corner! Everything is in place for another great Mayfest. We’ve got all of the music, food and artists ready to fire up for you on May 15th but we couldn’t do it without our sponsors who are so incredibly generous.
Of course, MidFirst Bank – our presenting sponsor – is so wonderful to Mayfest. MidFirst is making such an impact in Tulsa supporting wonderful events like Mayfest. It’s like they “get it.” They get that it’s all about the community and family and that without support like theirs, children won’t have great Mayfest memories. There is no way I can say thank you enough to MidFirst Bank.
We do have a host of other sponsors, some who give cash, others who give in kind. The Children’s Hospital at St. Francis is again a co-sponsor of KidZone. Last year, their Bear Clinic was such a huge success: kids can bring or get a bear and then they walk it around to all of the stations including x-ray and surgery. The kids love it and so do the parents – it takes some of the ouch out of going to the hospital when a child’s first experience is such a fun and safe one. And thank you to Williams for co-sponsoring KidZone. Williams has been the KidZone co-sponsor for several years and we do appreciate it.
One of my favorite things at Mayfest is the Invitational Gallery and Metropolitan Real Estate Investors, LLC is the sponsor and host again this year. Please make sure you visit this incredible gallery featuring the art of over 75 local Tulsa artists. It’s located in the lobby of the Williams Towers. The art is for sale and this gives Tulsans a unique opportunity to see and buy wonderful art from local artists. They need our support.
Mayfest is all about the art and Public Service Company of Oklahoma is again co-sponsoring our Youth Art Gallery which can be found upstairs in the Performing Arts Center. Young artists from all over the area are invited to show their art in this beautiful gallery. In addition to several cash prizes for all age groups, one high school student will receive a $500 prize for the PSO Mark of Excellence Award. You won’t believe that some of this art is done by students yet to graduate from high school. The vast range of talent takes your breath away.
Our incredible poster will be unveiled May 1st at OSU-Tulsa, who again has sponsored it. If you would like to attend this event, please email your request to comments@tulsamayfest.org and we will send you the information. Tickets are limited, so let us know as soon as possible. You get to see the art before anyone else and it’s a really fun party!
Once the poster is unveiled, William Franklin, mural artist, will begin painting the mural on the side of the Crowne Plaza Hotel which is the Official Mayfest Hotel. The new General Manager at the Crowne Plaza, Marlin Keranen, has been so supportive of Mayfest and we do appreciate it. They are also offering a special Mayfest rate on hotel rooms. If you would like to know about this rate and book a room, again, email comments@tulsamayfest.org and we will send you the information.
We have other generous sponsors including Corona Extra, Hille Foundation, and The Gelvin Foundation. I can’t thank them enough for their continued support of Mayfest. Straxis Technology is kind enough to donate their services so we can bring you our wonderful, informative website and added perks like this newsletter.
Of course there are a host of other people and companies that we couldn’t put Mayfest together without. To date, they are: 94-9FM and 107-9FM Jazz Tulsa, Bryan Cooper, FedEx/Kinko’s, K95.5FM, Kanbar Properties, Lamar Outdoor, Look Ma! Creative - Nicole McMahan, OklaTravelNet, Pepsi, Pierson Gallery, Reunion Center/Brune Law Firm, Select RX Pharmacy, TJ's Liquor, Tulsa Airport Authority, Tulsa Parks and the University of Tulsa.
I hope you can take note of our sponsors and patronize them whenever possible. Generosity is a wonderful virtue that should to be rewarded.
Thanks for reading our newsletter and supporting Mayfest. Our sponsors are important but so are you: the people who come to Mayfest every year and spread the word.
See you at Mayfest!
Festively,
Mary Jo
MySpace VIP Contest
Be sure to check out the weekly scavenger hunt contest on Mayfest's MySpace page. Everyone who signs up as a friend of Mayfest on MySpace is eligible to participate. Monday of each week, a set of pictures of sights Downtown are posted in a "friends only" area of the MySpace page. The first person who identifies every picture correctly will win a pair of VIP tickets to the festival night of their choice. VIP tickets entitle the winners to seats in the private "VIP area" directly adjacent to the main stage as well as free snacks and beverages throughout the evening. Complete contest rules and details will be posted on the festival MySpace page. Visit our MySpace page to sign up now.
Volunteer Opportunities
We are in great need of volunteers in the Mayfest coupon booths. Perhaps your company, service club, neighborhood association, church or just a group of friends would like to take over a coupon booth and man some or all of the shifts in a day. If an organization chooses to take a coupon booth for the entire day, they are encouraged to wear shirts relating to that organization and have the option of displaying a small sign/banner within the coupon booth.
Interested volunteers should download a volunteer application or contact Mayfest Volunteer Coordinator, Barbara Pendleton, at 918.951.1664. Volunteer shifts are approximately 3-4 hours each and volunteers are welcome to work one or more shifts throughout the festival. Volunteering at Mayfest is a fun and entertaining way to give back to the community and meet new people. All volunteers will receive a $5 off coupon for official Mayfest merchandise as well as a special button, which is not available for purchase, that features the 2008 poster artwork.
National Act Announced
Downtown Tulsa Unlimited and MidFirst Bank are proud to announce Joe Diffie, Oklahoma native and country music star, will be headlining the festival on Saturday, May 17th at 9:00 p.m.
Joe Diffie has 10 No. 1 records, over 20 top 10 hits, two platinum albums, two gold albums and six million in sales to his credit. Born and raised in Oklahoma, Diffie was immersed in music from a young age. His first public performance was in his aunt’s country band at the age of four. Diffie was drawn to the Nashville, Tennessee area to pursue songwriting which eventually led him to become a major label recording artist. His most recent album “Tougher Than Nails” was released in 2004.
The Pendleton Family Fiddlers, Round Up Boys and TJ McFarland Band will be opening for Diffie. Thursday and Friday nights’ concerts will feature Admiral Twin and Eldredge Jackson, respectively. All concerts are free and open to the public. Headline acts will perform on the Main Festival Stage on the Williams Green at 3rd between Boston and Main. For a complete list of the performing artist schedule, please click here.
Participating Artists Announced
Tulsa International Mayfest, scheduled for May 15-18 in downtown Tulsa, announces the list of over 100 participating artists for the four-day festival.
The list includes both Visual and Market artists that come from around the country. Visual artists are accepted into Mayfest after a highly selective jurying process. They offer fine art in a variety of mediums, including everything from clay to wood. The Mayfest Market is comprised of artists and craftsmen and usually features items such as toys, folk art, calligraphy, etc.
The 2008 festival marked the first year of the switch from paper applications and slides to Zapplication, a free online application system.
“Our artists were very happy last year,” said Mary Jo Sartain, Mayfest Festival Chair. “I believe that the word of mouth regarding their positive experiences coupled with the new online application process resulted in the large increase of the number of applicants this year. I was very pleased with both the quantity and quality of our applicants for Mayfest 2008,” said Sartain.
The names, mediums and artwork images of each participating artist can be found on our Web site. Links to artists’ Web sites are also available.
Mural
The tradition of painting a mural of the Mayfest poster artwork will continue with Mayfest 2008. Last year, the mural, painted by William Franklin, depicted the artwork for the official 2007 Tulsa International Mayfest poster, by Gailard Sartain, on the south wall of the Crowne Plaza Hotel, facing Main Street. The Crowne Plaza has graciously agreed to let us use their wall for the 2008 poster. So, be sure to come downtown starting on May 2nd to check the progress of the mural. It’s amazing to see such a small piece of art become larger than life.
Sponsors
Mayfest is presented by MidFirst Bank. Other sponsors include include The Children’s Hospital at St. Francis, Williams, Public Service Company of Oklahoma, Metropolitan Real Estate Investors, LLC, Smoothie King, Corona Extra, Hille Foundation, OSU-Tulsa, The Gelvin Foundation, Straxis Technology and Crowne Plaza.