This year’s 17th annual Malad Valley Welsh Festival will feature some new events and a lot of returning favorites.  There will be something for everyone – whether or not you are Welsh! The Festival is scheduled for Friday, June 30, and Saturday, July 1, with an evening devotional on Sunday, July 2.

Presentations

Each day of the Festival will begin with an Opening Ceremony, presided over by Monte John, the 2022 Bard of the Festival.  The Knight of the Festival will lead past Bards into the Festival, somewhat reminiscent of the pageantry at the eisteddfod held annually in Wales. Besides Monte, the past Bards of the Welsh Festival are Jan Crowther Myers, Dotty Thorpe Evanson, and Cory Webster.

Lucie Thomas Washburn will introduce the theme of this year’s Festival by speaking about St. David, the patron saint of Wales, and his emphasis on kindness. Other presentations will feature best-selling author Dean Hughes and Dulais Rhys, a native of Wales and current resident of Montana, who will speak about the Welsh National Anthem. On Sunday evening, Bob Washburn will present the history of the Logan Temple, which was Malad Stake’s temple for over 100 years.

Music, Poetry, Art

Music, poetry, literature and art have to be part of any Welsh Festival. Celtic musicians will perform on the outdoor amphitheater at Malad City Park. Harpists, pianists, organists and vocal groups will perform on Friday evening. A youth concert and a piano ensemble concert will also be held. The Malad Valley Welsh Men’s Chorus will perform several times during the Festival.

Youth poets will recite their poems at the reading on Friday with winners being crowned at the conclusion of the program. The fiction winner will be named at the Festival’s final program. Adult poets will recite their poems at the Finale of the Festival with one winner being chaired as the Festival Bard and one winner receiving the Patsy Price Scott Poetry Prize.

Works of art by the winners of the Youth Art Competition will be displayed in the 2nd Ward Church building. The Oxford Peak Arts Council will sponsor their “Art on Main” event on Friday along Main Street in downtown Malad.

Other Activities

The Oneida Quilters will host their annual quilt show at the Co-op building during the Festival.  Special events will be held at the Malad Valley Heritage Square in Samaria on both days of the Festival. Kids’ activities sponsored by the Malad After-School Program will be on Friday, and pioneer games sponsored by the Malad Middle School MathCounts Team will be on Saturday.  Guided wagon tours of historic sites in Malad are always popular and allow visitors the opportunity to stop in downtown Malad at the Quilt Show, the Oneida Pioneer Museum and the 141-year-old Malad Presbyterian Church. The Oneida County Library’s Friends of the Library will sponsor a book sale during the Festival.

Whether or not you have ever been to Wales, you will want to take a “Walk through Wales” in the display area of the Church, where enlarged photo banners will bring Wales to Malad. Family histories of many of Malad Valley’s first pioneer families will be on display.

Lots of food booths be available, selling everything from corn dogs to waffles to ice cream. Authentic Welsh food will be prepared by the Malad High School Family and Consumer Science students and sold at the “Taste of Wales” booth.

Craft booths will sell practical and whimsical items throughout the Festival. The Welsh Country Store will sell souvenirs of Wales and the Welsh Festival. 

Additional Information

The Malad Valley Welsh Festival is partially funded by grants from the Idaho Commission on the Arts, the Idaho Humanities Council, Bistline Foundation, and the Southeast Idaho High County Travel Council and generous donations from local businesses and organizations. Admission to the Festival is free although some individual events will charge participation fees. Donations are very welcome.

For the complete schedule and additional information, please see www.welshfestival.com or call Malad City Hall at 208-766-4010.