WILMINGTON — On Sept. 23 and 24, 10 bands from all over New England are coming to play together to help save businesses in town that were devastated by the floodwaters of Tropical Storm Irene.
Floodstock VT, a two-day musical festival, will raise money to be distributed directly to businesses who can and want to reopen.
The musical lineup for the festival includes Entrain, Mass Air Flow, The Boxcar Lilies, and John Brazile from Massachusetts; Castle from Newport, R.I.; The Miles Band, Mister Dix, and Jeff Campbell and the Honeybadgers from the Deerfield Valley, and Shawn Tooley from Maine.
The event will kick off on Friday at 6 p.m. at the Snow Barn in West Dover.
The 21-and-over concert is sponsored by Mount Snow, and the $25 ticket price will include an all-you-can-eat pizza bar.
On Saturday at noon, Adams Farm in Wilmington will host a family-friendly barnyard concert in the hay barn where food and goods will be sold by vendors whose businesses were harmed or destroyed by the flood, including Jezebel's Eatery, Hayseed Gifts, and artist Ann Coleman.
The price of admission is $20 at the entrance gate. Admission for children younger than 12 is $10, with no charge for kids younger than 6.
Capping off the weekend will be a Saturday night concert in the ballroom at the Grand Summit hotel hosted by Mount Snow featuring three bands headlined by Entrain of Martha's Vineyard. Light fare will be served and a cash bar will be available.
How did this show come together?
Brothers Steve and Chris Jalbert, who are owners of Après Vous, a Wilmington restaurant damaged by the flood, together with John and Rachel Pilcher of The Wilmington Inn & Tavern, gathered with musician Peter Miles by candlelight on the night that Tropical Storm Irene destroyed the town.
The five hatched this plan: to find a way to save the jobs and to keep the businesses of Wilmington from becoming shuttered by this storm.
With no tools of their own to help, they knew that music, and the generosity of artists, could serve as the tools they needed to save a town.
The streets of Wilmington are lined with stores and shops, whose owners lost virtually everything in a matter of hours. And their employees lost their livelihoods.
Concert organizers point out that few have the money to rebuild their stores, let alone re-stock inventory.
“Floodstock won't fix every shop or save all of Wilmington,” said Steve Jalbert. “But it will get money in the hands of business owners in the short term, and might serve as the tipping point for an owner deciding whether or not he can stay in business.”
Tickets for Friday and Saturday evening are on sale at www.mountsnow.com as well are packages for all three events for $65.
One hundred percent of the entertainment, infrastructure, venues, and staffing for the event has been donated, which means that 100 percent of the ticket sales and donations received will be distributed directly to businesses in need.
Donations can be made at www.floodstockvt.com or by check, made out to “Floodstock VT” and mailed to P.O. Box 103, Wilmington, VT 05363.