By Kevin Hanson
The Courier-Herald
For nearly 20 years, Farm Aid has touted the benefits of a strong, rural America, using annual concerts to finance its efforts on behalf of family farms.
Saturday, the big-time, big-name show comes to the Enumclaw Plateau.
The benefit concert headlined by country icon Willie Nelson and a handful of dedicated friends will play the White River Amphitheatre. The show, at the 20,000-seat outdoor venue, will mark the first time Farm Aid has played on the West Coast.
Among those slated to perform, aside from Nelson, are Neil Young, John Mellencamp and Dave Matthews.
For Plateau residents, shows at the amphitheater between Enumclaw and Auburn can mean traffic tie-ups, as the concert venue is accessed only by state Route 164. Concert promoters advertise one of the best ways to get to the site is taking state Route 410 through Bonney Lake and Buckley, then skirting around Enumclaw on 244th Avenue Southeast.
Saturday's concert is slated to begin at 2 p.m. but the parking lot opens at noon, so traffic will likely be heavier in the area throughout the morning.
Farm Aid is a national nonprofit organization that, according to its Web site, "works to ensure a safe, healthy, fresh food supply by keeping family farmers on the land." In the past, the organization has provided grants to farm organizations, churches and service agencies for emergency needs, hot lines, non-profit legal assistance, education and organizational development. Over time, the emphasis has changed from an emergency service for individual farmers to one that deals with broader issues.
In 2003, Farm Aid made grants totaling $250,000 to 42 family farm groups in 26 states. Since its inception, the organization has raised $26 million to promote the preservation of family farms and locally controlled, sustainable agriculture.
Farm Aid was sparked in the summer of 1985 during the famous Live Aid concert when Bob Dylan said on stage, "Wouldn't it be great if we did something for our own farmers right here in America?" Nelson, Young and Mellencamp agreed that family farmers were in dire need of assistance and decided to plan a concert for America. The show was put together in six weeks and was staged Sept. 22, 1985, in Champaign, Ill., before a crowd of 80,000. It raised more than $7 million for America's family farmers and included a diverse cast of entertainers that included Dylan, Billy Joel, B.B. King, Loretta Lynn, Roy Orbison, Tom Petty and many more.
Since then, the yearly concert has traveled to a variety of Midwest states, the Eastern Seaboard and into the South.
The organization was spurred by widespread farm foreclosures of the mid-1980s and the exodus of family farmers from their land. Organizers keep the effort alive now, pushing for safe, fresh, locally grown food. But the Farm Aid operation takes a philosophical turn, as well, noting, "Family farmers also embody the essential American ideals of democracy and diverse land ownership."
Kevin Hanson can be reached at khanson@courierherald.com.
