David Festival growing worship leaders
Festival coming the weekends of April 11 and 15 in Ontario
A festival that aims to help churches cultivate worship and the arts is attracting some big names and even more interest as it enters its seventh year.
The David Festival started in 2008 with a handful of churches, that many volunteers and a step into the unknown of launching a weekend-long workshop experience aimed at helping local Christians engaged in worship and the arts do things even better.
Based in Port Perry and Uxbridge Ontario, (township of Scugog) the festival has grown in size and scope since. Last year representatives from 50 churches attended the festival, now stretched over two weekends, three towns and offering workshops in writing, songwriting, choral music and a very popular worship band workshop that last year brought worship musician and leader Robin Mark from Dublin, Ireland.
This year, the David Festival takes place the weekends of April 11 and 15, featuring several well-known, award-winning presenters and workshop leaders such as worship leader Brian Doerksen, author Carolyn Weber and choral expert Lee Willingham.
In addition to music and writing workshops, a drama workshop, led by Jenny Boot of The Peoples Church Toronto, is new to the festival this year. A visual arts panel will explore why design and beauty matter to worship. It will also discuss common design and décor issues in churches.
“We’ve been amazed at how the David Festival has grown since it began,” says Bev Foster, one of the local organizers. “Even though our focus absolutely remains on equipping local churches and individuals, we are seeing participants coming from further and further away as they discover this unique, affordable and hands-on workshop experience right here in Scugog.”
The involvement of local churches in hosting the workshops and promoting the opportunity to learn and grow to their own worship leaders and congregations has been key to the success of the conference, say organizers.
“This really has been a grassroots initiative from creative members of a variety of churches in the area,” says Susan O’Riordan, chair of the David Festival Committee. “Each workshop has a champion, a volunteer from a local church who does all the leg-work and works with their “expert” who will be leading the workshop. This makes it a very collaborative experience and makes sure that it is do-able.”
O’Riordan believes the festival is growing as Christians from the surrounding area hear about it, (Port Perry/Uxbridge are close to larger centres of Peterborough, Oshawa and Whitby, for example); they recognize a rare opportunity to work very closely with a Canadian worship and the arts leader, for very affordable workshop prices.
“It’s big city in quality, but small town in size, intimacy and cost,” says O’Riordan.
Visit www.davidfestival.ca to find out more and to register.
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