Another Great 48 (we do need to change the name to 72 hour jam though!) was monumentally successful this year. We had record hotel stays, with an overflow crowd across the street. Everyone was smiling. Jack Pierce, our man in Bakers- field/Kern County, did a superb job organizing along with his team of volunteers. The Friday night con- cert featuring High Country and the Bow Ties was well attended – many local Bakersfield folks joined us for the show; both bands really stepped it up to entertain the crowd. California bluegrass at its best. We thank all those who dropped by our CBA table to renew their member- ship or to join our Association.
We rolled out our new logo with new banners and stickers to positive responses. Only one person complained to me about the design, and that complaint was that there was no color. Stay tuned because there are color additions possible in the future, but branding us as a California organization was the first step. I personally like the new logo and the font is ADA approved!
We had a very long Board meeting Saturday. Jessica Furui resigned as Director in order to clear her schedule to open her new restaurant in North Beach (SF). Jessica will continue to volunteer to do some committee work. The Father’s Day Bluegrass Festival band lineup was completed, so the printing of posters and shirts can now begin. We are on track to produce our 44th annual Festival, CBA Music Camp and Academy. Ticket sales are on target, with Montie Elston and Tim Edes stepping up to be Festival Di- rectors. Deb Livermore is confirming volunteers.
Our Fire Relief GoFundMe campaign continues to bring in do- nations; it raised much more than our goal. The Board is now working on a plan for disbursement to our members who must replace instruments. Recovery from these horrific fires is a long term matter, and only now are people beginning to hear what any insurance coverage might be. We still have members living in RVs and considering future plans. It is difficult to imagine the situation our fire survivors are facing. Lucy Smith is our eyes and ears in the Butte County area, and she is also working with other local nonprofits to support the community,
The 19th annual Sonoma County Bluegrass and Folk Festival in Sebastopol on Saturday March 9 is the next CBA event. Mark and Colleen Hogan have lined up an- other great offering for this day long concert and jam. Tickets are available on line now.
CBA Director and Area VP Mark Hogan has also arranged for the Old Time Fiddle Contest (held in Oroville for over 50 years) to be held in conjunction with our Spring Campout in Lodi. Mark will coordinate the fiddle contest and activities and Deb Livermore is again coordinating the Campout. We welcome our friends in the old time fiddle community to join us in Lodi, and we look forward to renewing old friendships and making new friends.
There is new news about CBA Youth Jams this year. The CBA Youth Program will again host a youth jam at the Berkeley Old Time Music Convention (BOTMC) FREE Spring Fling on April 7 at the Freight & Salvage in Berkeley. The Youth Jam will be held during the lunch hour (noon to one) in the lobby. The Spring Fling is a day long event with many activities. Pacifica’s Jared Katz is our new Youth Jam coordinator for our Father’s Day Festival. Jared has planned jams on Thursday and Friday evenings at the Kids on Bluegrass site in Grass Val- ley. A “song list” will be published soon so that our beginning and intermediate jammers will have some guidelines for participation.
