by Rosie Carpenter
On Sunday, January 14th the Urban Appalachian Community Coalition will be hosting its annual Ringin’ in the Appalachian New Year. This event will be held at The Sanctuary, 2110 St. Michael Street in Lower Price Hill from noon to 5 pm and consists of old time music, square dancing, a pot luck dinner, a pie contest and even a hog hollering contest. Performers include Rabbit Hash String Band, Harold Kennedy, Carter Bridge, Green Willow, and the Russel Up Some Grub String Band, plus storyteller Omope Carter Daboiku as emcee.
This cultural celebration has always been a labor of love by being completely led by volunteers. “Ringin’ in” showcases Appalachian traditions, while also preserving and passing down our Appalachian heritage within the Urban Appalachian community. As organizer Nancy Laird says of this event, “Ringing’ in an Appalachian New Year is all about respecting old traditions and creating new ones! Each year is a little different, based on who shows up. But one thing is for sure, by the time it’s over we’re all family.”
Ringin’ in an Appalachian New Year, supported in part by ArtsWave, is free and open to the public. This fun, family event kicks off a year of many events for the Urban Appalachian Community Coalition, host to the 41 Annual Appalachian Studies Association Conference, subtitled “Re-stitching the Seams: Appalachia Beyond Its Borders,” to be held at downtown Cincinnati at the Millennium and Hyatt Hotels, April 5-8, 2018.
The Conference will be another volunteer led event and will include presentations, workshops, educational tours and performances from urban and rural Appalachian community members, service providers, educators, artists and advocates, free evening arts events in downtown Cincinnati, Over the Rhine and Northern Kentucky and an Urban Appalachian Showcase at the Aronoff Center. If you are interested in volunteering for the Conference, please visit our Sign Up Page. All questions regarding volunteering should be directed to our Volunteer Coordinator, Rosie Carpenter, at [email protected]
To read about past Ringin’ in an Appalachian New Year, please visit our previous blog: “What is a “Ringin’ in?”
Rosie Carpenter serves as UACC’s new Volunteer Coordinator, through the AmeriCorps Program. Rosie has a BA in Anthropology with certificates in Historic Preservation and Heritage Studies. Since graduating in May 2015, her career path has focused on building community through the preservation of the built environment; she welcomes this new opportunity to build community through personal relationships at a grassroots level. To contact Rosie about UACC volunteer opportunities, email her at [email protected].