Harvest Festival time: Helping out just becomes a way of life

By Mary Owen

Charlie Silbernagel is only 5, but he loves to brag that he is a junior member of the Harvest Festival crew.

“He is a huge help to our festival,” said mom, Becky, a longtime volunteer with the popular Sublimity event.

“His favorite thing to do is walk the grounds to find treasures, to pick up zip ties, various nuts, bolts screw, nails, coins – whatever he can find that appeals to him.”

Becky Silbernagel has been volunteering on the Sublimity Harvest Festival committee for about a decade. She is a certified nurse assistant on the neuro/trauma floor at Salem Hospital, a job she loves.

“And I spend my spare time doing festival stuff,” she said. “It’s a year-round hobby!”

Without dedicated people like Silbernagel, the Sublimity Harvest Festival – which runs Sept. 11-13 this year – would not happen. Like Charlie, who is following in his mom’s footsteps, Becky grew up around it and eventually into it.

“My dad was part of the festival for years,” she said. “I remember when the festival was ‘in town’ and have watched it grow.”

Silbernagel is one of 69 committee members this year, all playing “important roles, making this festival happen.”

“It’s amazing how we all pull together,” Silbernagel said. “Some put their lives on hold, whether it be spending time down at the grounds all year long, or camping for festival weekend, each person makes this festival what it is.”

Silbernagel calls the festival her “home away from home.”

“I love to help make the grounds as nice as they look, be involved in parades, the entertainment tent, the group fundraising line up, the inside food concessions and help out wherever I can,” said Silbernagel, who is also the secretary for the Sublimity Harvest Festival Committee.

Silbernagel, who loves volunteering, appreciates that the festival helps community groups earn money to run their own programs.

This year, the Mari-Linn School parent-teacher association will handle garbage pick-up. Cascade High School cheerleaders will benefit from taking care of parking. Stayton High School volleyball girls will raise funds by running a track concession booth, along with other community organizations. And the local chapter of the Knights of Columbus will run the designated drivers booth.

“Giving back to the community is what the Harvest Festival is all about!” said Silbernagel enthusiastically.
Silbernagel loves the evenings, when the bands start up, and seeing the tent fill with people “just wanting to have a good time.”

“I love the sound of the pulls – and the monster trucks,” she said. “I don’t get to see them, because I’m running around doing my stuff. The sounds of the announcer, watching kids have a blast on the bouncy toys in our Kid Zone – I love it all!”

Brent Dolby, the festival’s president this year, and his wife, Diannah, who volunteers as treasurer, agree with Silbernagel.

“I have too much fun not to be a part of this festival,” said Brent, a millwright who puts his skills to use on the festival’s construction projects.

The couple started volunteering about nine years ago, when Brent, a stock truck puller, joined the track crew for the stock and modified truck pulls.

“Women at that time were not allowed on the track, and so I created a position of stats recorder,” Diannah said. “We’d follow the events and post the results on our Web site for the pullers to view exactly where they fell in their class.”

Several years later, Diannah, a bookkeeper, took on the treasurer position, a job she believes is perfect for her.

All three would love to see the Harvest Festival grow, with the grounds becoming a more year-round destination.

“I would like a large meeting hall and a permanent building covering the entertainment area,” Brent said.
Silbernagel opts for getting covered bleachers as well as growing sponsorships right along with the festival.

“Along with how special and important our festival members, volunteers, vendors, group fundraisers, monster truck drivers and so on, our sponsors are the reason we have the funds to put on this festival so that we can give back to our community,” Silbernagel said. “That is what the Sublimity Harvest Festival is all about, to put on an event for all ages, have a great time, AND getting to give back to our community!”