Shine Music Festival intentionally accessible creating inclusion for all music lovers
Summer music festivals bring music lovers together in a shared experience. The Shine Music Festival does that, but opens the experience to people with disabilities. It's intentionally accessible to create inclusion for all music lovers. Festival founder, Shawn Satterfield, spoke about what she loves about the festival on First at Four.
"Definitely, the community and shared experiences it's created. Our first year, we had someone thank us for giving her the gift of a music festival that she was able to navigate on her terms and her timing without the need of a sighted person."
This year Shine lost some large donors at the last minute, and was in danger of having to be cancelled. But many non-profits which serve the disabled community came together to raise money to make it happen because it's become such an important event in their community. Also several vendors gave discounts and a new venue was located again at a greatly discounted fee.
"I truly believe that when we come together as a collective whole, we're able to just move that change needle so much faster then we are independently," Satterfield explained.
The music starts at Shine Music Festival at 1:00 p.m. and goes until 8:00 p.m. There is a deep lineup of great acts this year. Denver band, SunSquabi is the headliner. Neal Evans Fro Down will play, which has some well known members including Felix Pastorius, Harry Waters, and Greg Harris.
"One of our missions has always been to empower venues and events to think outside of the minimalistic ADA laws and create more inclusive spaces," Saterfield told CBS News Colorado's Karen Leigh.
The Festival goes to great lengths to make sure that any person can access the event and enjoy the music. Beyond wheelchair ramps, there will be menus written in braille, technology that allows those with hearing lose to feel the music, and sensory soothing spaces.
"We are bringing x-ray glasses in this year, which is live close captioning that comes across the lens," Satterfield said.
LINK: Shine Music Festival
Shine Music Festival is Saturday, August 26, 2023. The doors open at 12:00 p.m., and the music begins at 1:00 p.m. at ReelWorks Denver. Admission is free.
