The POPS wishes to thank the following supporters of the 6th Annual Kingfield POPS...

2008 POPS Partner:

Members of the Conductor Club

($5,000 and up gift)

Members of the Baton Club

• Franklin County Chamber of Commerce*
• Poland Spring*
• The Irregular*
• Tranten's Store*

Members of the Concertmaster Club

• Anonymous*
• Herbet S. Wing Estate*
• Jim and Betty Ann Listowich*
• Kyes Insurance*
• Nan, Daryle and Victoria Hilton*
• Sugarloaf Mountain Corporation*
• The Simmons Trust*
• Town of Kingfield*
• TransCanada
• Valley Gas and Oil Company*
• Win and Vici Robinson*

The Kingfield POPS is a non-profit, community-based organization with 501(c) (3) status. We welcome any and all donations. No contribution is too small. Please give what you can, payable to "Kingfield POPS" and mail it to P.O. Box 365, Kingfield ME 04947.

For information on awards and benefits for sponsors, please see our sponsorship brochure.

Why does this region need the POPS?

1. More than half the children in this region are economically disadvantaged and are unlikely ever to have the opportunity to travel to hear a live symphony orchestra.

   The POPS brings the symphony to children who would never hear it otherwise. Fifty-three percent of the children in Maine School District 58, and almost as many in neighboring school districts, are eligible for a federally funded free-and-reduced-lunch program. What that means is that they are economically disadvantaged. They are kids who don't get to go to concerts -- especially not performances by a professional orchestra.

   By bringing the Bangor Symphony Orchestra to Franklin County, and maintaining moderate ticket prices for adults and free admission for youth, we are making it possible for these kids to hear Maine's oldest professional community orchestra.

2. This community is geographically isolated and has historically been cut off from this type of musical performance.

   Children aren't the only ones who rarely have the opportunity to enjoy this type of performance in this area. This entire community has been geographically isolated and has traditionally had limited access to live symphonic music performances.

3. Traditional sources of income have dwindled in recent years, and the local economy has been floundering.

   It was not a coincidence that the idea for the POPS was born around the time the local mills were closing. People here are trying to create a new foundation for the local economy.

   The POPS boosts the local economy. Tourism is the number one industry in Maine -- but in this part of Maine, the tourists mostly come in the winter. Our tourism infrastructure lies underused in the summer. We are changing this. During the POPS weekend, traditionally a slow time, local businesses report a surge in business. Over time, as the POPS festival grows, there will be an even greater positive impact on the local economy.

   The POPS is also helping to kick-start the Creative Economy, which Governor Baldacci has identified as an economic sector with great potential, one that build networks between private, public and nonprofit sectors. The Creative Economy links the arts and education, on the one hand, and jobs and economic growth, on the other. "The arts," he has said, "add to our social capital and engage people to become more active and involved in their communities.... Social capital enhances economic capital, with individuals and communities alike stimulated to improve their towns and their state."

   The POPS is all about the Creative Economy: art, education, innovation, and creative community involvement. It's about new beginnings, and about making this a better place to live.

4. The POPS is committed to bringing the sound of music into the schools. Thanks to the POPS, Bangor Symphony Orchestra ensembles have performed in regional schools, students have had the chance to interact with orchestra members and have been able to attend BSO Youth Concerts in Orono. In 2007, the Kruger Brothers, the Franklin Fiddlers and the Abbott Hill Ramblers spent two full days working with 1,500 children in the schools of SAD 9 and SAD 58. The POPS also donated funds to the Mt. Abram High School Band to assist with costs associated with an upcoming performance trip to Orlando, Florida.

   Listen to what one supporter, a single mother of two children, told us: "My kids had never been to a concert. For that matter, I had never been to a concert. I always wanted to -- I remember hearing classical music when an orchestra came to my school when I was a kid, and I really liked it. I want something better for my kids. I want them to know a bigger world. A friend recently took my son to his first concert and he started talking about wanting to take violin lessons. I'll be taking my children to the POPS this year -- and if my son still wants violin lessons, maybe I'll try to find a way to get them for him." The Kingfield POPS is changing lives.

Kingfield POPS is pledged to provide the Western Maine region with a sustainable annual music festival that strengthens the community by providing exciting live music experiences for diverse audiences and enrichment for area youth through music education, performance opportunities and festival involvement.