Sam Hinton Folk Heritage Festival This Saturday

This year’s 45th annual  will feature a variety of acoustic and folk performances by local musicians, in addition to storytellers, dancers and jam session participants. 

The free event will take place from 10:30 a.m. to 5:40 p.m. on Saturday at . Not only can visitors enjoy performances, but they can also participate in the family country dance or showcase their musical talents at the open mic stage.

“Poway is such a great community, as far as getting involved in this sort of thing,” Event organizer and storyteller Charles Johnson said. “I always say you could show up at Old Poway Park with a banjo and within a month, you’ll have a band ... This event just crystallizes that fact.”

Food will be available at the park and craft artists will sell their handicrafts. Visitors can also ride the for a nominal fee or go to the Nelson House and Museum.

Below is the schedule of activities:

Entertainment schedule on the Gazebo Stage:
11 a.m. - Rattlesnake Creek Old Time String Band
12 p.m. - Baja Blues Boys
1 p.m. - Patty Hall
2 p.m. - Robin Henkel
3 p.m. - Chris Clarke & Plow
4 p.m. - Trails and Rails
5 p.m. - Jeff Bertino and Mike Stubblefield

Jam schedule in the Green Park:
11 a.m. - Traditional Irish Session
1 p.m. - Bluegrass jam
1 p.m. - Old Time Music jam (behind Templar’s Hall)

Dance schedule at Templar’s Hall:
11 a.m. - English Country Dance with Chris Page
1 p.m. - Contra Dance with Chris Page and live music by Ranting Banshee
3:30 p.m. - International Folk Dance with Mary Marshall

Storytelling schedule at the Porter House:
11 a.m. - Tales from Rattlesnake Creek by Mindy Donner, Leo Baggerly, Jim Dieckmann
12 p.m. - Heroes and Villains by Jessica Baris, Patti Christensen & James Nelson-Lucas, Li-Anne Roswell
1 p.m. - Delicious Stories by Jim Dieckmann, Patti Christensen & James Nelson-Lucas, Marilyn McPhie
2 p.m. - Stories from Earth, Water, Air and Fire by Cynthia Griffin, Li-Anne Roswell
3 p.m. - Puzzle and Riddle Stories by Sarah Saulter, Linda Whiteside, Fred Laskowski
4 p.m. - Story Swap - open stage

In addition, there will also be an open mic stage all day, as well as a jam session for those who want to play their instruments under the trees in the picnic area. Johnson said the traditional Irish jam session is new this year. 

Johnson, who has been involved since 2008, will not only be a storyteller, but an emcee for the event. 

“I’ll be performing a lot of stories on stage and I’ll also be introducing the acts,” he said.

Marilyn McPhie, who will be telling Delicious Stories at 1 p.m. on Saturday, will perform folk tale called “Emerald Lemonade.” The Tales from Rattlesnake Creek segment at 11 a.m. will include a story called “West of Snow,” which is about the Donner Party.

“It’s a wonderful event ... They do great music out there,” McPhie said. “A lot of the music tell a story too, so it’s pretty much storytelling all around.”

The event was founded in 1967 by folk musician Sam Hinton as the San Diego Folk Festival, but the name was changed in 2002.

The festival not only commemorates the life of Hinton, who passed away in 2009, but also folk singers Tanya Rose and Johnny Walker, who also contributed to the local traditional music community.

Old Poway Park Action Committee and San Diego Folk Heritage are organizing the event. For more information, visit the San Diego Folk Heritage website.

• On the same day, the  will kick off for the summer at 9 a.m. at . The free event—which takes place on the first and third Saturdays of the month—features local artists who work in traditional arts and crafts. For more information, call (858) 486-3497 or visit the city’s website.

• If you’re itching for some more folk music this weekend, attend  at 2:30 p.m. on Sunday at the . Bluegrass musicians and teachers Janet Beazley and Chris Stuart will lead the session for beginning and intermediate musicians. The event costs $5. Please call (858) 598-4707 or visit North San Diego County Folk Circle for more details.