Cartersville, GA — Cartersville Downtown Development Authority & Main Street Program received one of the first ever Awards of Association Excellence from the Historic High Country Travel Association (HHCTA). Recognized for the various work and involvement on the 2nd Annual Cartersville Bluegrass & Folk Festival, held on Saturday, October 19, 2014, HHCTA President Tom Shinall announced earlier this month that Cartersville DDA received the award for Best Event with Attendance of 2,500 or more.
Established in 2014, under former HHCTA President Tara Currier, the HHCTA Awards of Excellence are a way to recognize, honor and promote the outstanding achievements of efforts made in the hospitality and tourism industries in the northwest region of Georgia. To be eligible for submitting a nomination, the nominee must be a member of Georgia’s Historic High Country Travel Association. All submissions were due at the end of 2014, with a Selection Committee formed in early 2014 to review and score all nominations.
“It is exciting to present an inaugural Award of Association Excellence to the Cartersville DDA for Best Event with an Attendance over 2,500,” said Tom Shinall current President of HHCTA. “The DDA’s Bluegrass & Folk Festival was nominated along with several other large regional events. To come out as the winner shows that their hard work and dedication to the event did not go unnoticed. This is a well-deserved award to a relatively new annual event in the Historic High Country Travel Association Region.”
Cartersville DDA submitted nominations for both the Cartersville Bluegrass & Folk Festival for Best Event, and for the new downtown mobile app, for Best Marketing Effort. The news of receiving the Award for Excellence for Best Event with Attendance of 2,500+ was a great honor and humbling recognition for all the hard work that has gone into that event since it’s inception in 2013.
Shared DDA/Main Street Promotions Chair Lara Jeanneret, “The Cartersville Bluegrass & Folk Festival was started in 2013 after a few board members and I discussed a need to bring a great festival like this to downtown. Downtown Cartersville was lacking any type of large event, specifically a music festival, and so the rest of the board felt this was a good idea to pursue. The first year went well, and we were able to make some positive improvements and changes to the 2014 event, which ended up attracting approximately 3,500 people. With two stages of entertainment, a large kid’s area, and numerous vendors, the free event offers plenty for people of all ages to enjoy. Planning takes right at 10 months for the event, which includes recruiting sponsors for the event; establishing the marketing strategy; coordinating the logistics of setup and cleanup; and arranging for volunteers to assist with the event. It is such an honor to have received the HHCTA Award for Association Excellence for the event in just its’ second year.”
Planning is already underway for the 3rd Annual Cartersville Bluegrass & Folk Festival, which will be held on Saturday, October 17, 2015. New this year, a committee has been formed to help with the planning and implementation of the event. It is the feeling that the 2015 event should be the biggest to date. In addition to establishing a Festival Zone to allow for the sale of beer and wine, the desire is to double the vendor area, and conclude the evening on the Main Stage, which will be on a brand new, covered pavilion which should be completed this summer. Sponsors are currently being sought for the event, and more information can be found by visiting www.cartersvillebluegrass.com.