Dancing in the streets at Summer Street Fest

By Serena Lapointe

From 12 to 5 pm on August 9, the Town of Whitecourt and Woodlands County held Summer

Street Fest in downtown Whitecourt. The event began in 2023 as a way to bring the community

together in the heart of the downtown to have some fun while encouraging residents to see what

the businesses have to offer.

“The goal for this specific event is to engage businesses in the community as well as provide a

good, fun Saturday for people looking for something to do. Most of the things to do here at the

event don’t have a cost associated with them, like the face painting and glitter tattoos or just

sitting down to listen to the live music,” explained Andrew Malmquist, Arts and Culture

Coordinator for the Town of Whitecourt.

A portion of 51st Avenue and 50th Street was closed to traffic during the event, allowing booths

to be set up pretty much anywhere, stretching the fun from one end to the other. The Farmer’s

Market took place inside the Whitecourt Legion, with many vendors to peruse, and there were

even more vendors outside, both from businesses like Vista Theatre MLT, who gave out free

popcorn and coupons, and from various small business owners. There were also a couple of

food trucks. “We have lots of different vendors down here,” said Malmquist.

One of the fun additions typically spotted at Whitecourt events is the special characters roving

around the area, interacting with attendees. In the past, organizers have brought in life-sized

cartoon characters, hula hoop artists, stilt walkers and silly magicians. “Today we have disco

rovers. They are mirrored characters with a disco ball head, and there are two of them roving

around together, dancing and engaging with different audience members,” said Malmquist.

Another staple at community events is the live performers. “We have Wanda’s Dream, Travina

Robinson, Zander Ness, Sweet Disasters, and Analog Smokeshow. We try to focus on local

bands and those from the area. They are all relatively local to Whitecourt.” Travina Robinson,

pictured, is a local musician from Barrhead. The singer-songwriter performed some of her

original music before scooting up the highway to Cardiff for an event there.

Following Robinson’s act was Zander Ness from Edson, a self-taught fourteen-year-old with a

voice for country music and good old-fashioned rock ‘n’ roll. The teenager performed at Party in

the Park earlier this summer, bringing his energy to the stage at Festival Park, and he brought

the same to Whitecourt’s downtown for Summer Street Fest, pictured.

Event goers either sat at the provided benches or lined the curb to listen and cheer on the

performers. Malmquist said the beauty of events like this is that people can come and go as

they please. “You don’t have to be here at a certain time, and you don’t have to come spend the

whole day down here either. You can come down, interact, engage, spend as much time as you

want and then continue on your way. And, if you want to come back later on, you can do that

too.”

Other communities, where events are gated, have a cost associated with walking around and

enjoying the sites. For the most part, events in Whitecourt aren’t set up that way. “If you’re

participating in the market, there would of course be some expenses there or the food vendors,

same thing, but other than that, there’s no cost associated with it. It’s an affordable and

accessible event for all,” said Malmquist.

Other events through the afternoon included a chalk art competition, which filled the sidewalk in

front of Whitecourt Stationery and White Wall Wood with beautiful colours and imaginative

designs, from under the sea and outer space perspectives, various animals, movie characters,

mountain vistas, and a field of flowers under a bright, blue sky.

“In the past, we have had pre-registration for the chalk art competition event, but this year we

wanted to open it up a bit more so that people could drop in and participate,” explained

Malmquist. Attendees were encouraged to vote for their top three favourites to help crown the

winners.

Across from the chalk displays were the Whitecourt & District Public Library and the Whitecourt

Fire Department. Library staff had a suncatcher painting kit and a Rubik’s Cube to give away to

passing kids. Those wanting to get crafty right there could pull up a chair and get creative.  

Next door with members of the Fire Department, kids could grab a fire hat and some other swag

items before hopping into the old fire truck, Beulah, and use their imagination to rush to a fire

scene to help. The blaring of the truck’s horn could be heard throughout the downtown as both

the young and young-at-heart hopped into the front seat, taking their turns pretending to be

firefighters.

“It’s a great experience. It’s nice to see people come out and have fun. My job, as Arts and

Culture Coordinator, is very privileged in the fact that I think it has a meaningful impact on a lot

of people, especially being able to offer accessible events that are not only accessible for

people with disabilities but those with socioeconomic difficulties as well,” smiled a thankful

Malmquist, as he looked out over a busy downtown.