In addition to our annual summer concert series, The Festival at Sandpoint is passionate about our year-round educational mission in the community. The Festival donates tickets for those who could not otherwise afford to experience a musical performance and presents many educational opportunities and programs including the following:

The Family Concert:
The Festival at Sandpoint's 2006 Family Concert, "Mighty Rivers of the World!" was a big hit from an educational and an entertainment standpoint. This popular "Festival for Families" included activities for kids of all ages, followed by a concert with Maestro Gary Sheldon and Verne Windham conducting the Spokane Youth Orchestra. The performance included Strauss' "The Beautiful Blue Danube," Handel's "Water Music," and a tribute to our own mighty river, the Mississippi, with our own VP Curt Hagan belting out Kerns' "Old Man River" and leading a delighted young crowd in a round of Woody Guthrie's "Roll on Columbia." Once again, the most popular pre-concert activity of the day was the Classical Instrument Petting Zoo, where kids get to try various instruments on for size under the tutelage of Sandpoint High School Band members. It was an excellent mentorship experience for everyone involved. Every child who came through the gates received a musical goody bag with an educational/fun activity booklet to take home regarding the concert.
5th Grade Music Outreach Program
	On the educational front, the Festival's 5th Grade Music Outreach Program continued to be a huge success this year. Now going into its ninth year, this wonderful program just keeps getting bigger and better. We attempt to reach every 5th child in Bonner and Boundary County public and private schools as well as home-schooled students in both counties. In May of 2006, an ensemble of twelve musicians traveled to each classroom led by Verne Windham of the Spokane Youth Orchestra and KPBX fame, to present performances of excerpts from the Festival's symphonic concerts. Lively lessons and discussions accompanied the performances and each student also received a study guide to take home with a voucher for three free tickets for themselves and their parents -- or other family members -- to attend the Festival's Grand Finale concert on August 13th. We also offered additional discounted tickets for $5 for all immediate family members of these 5th graders. Our Grand Finale Concert is now the highest attended concert of our season as we see more young faces in the audience each year!
Scholarships: Coldwater Creek Scholarship and Festival at Sandpoint/Angels Over Sandpoint Fine Arts Scholarship The Coldwater Creek Music Scholarship is given through The Festival at Sandpoint each year to a talented Bonner County high school instrumentalist with plans to continue their education in music. The Festival also works cooperatively with another local non-profit organization, Angels Over Sandpoint, to award a scholarship that rotates its area of focus annually to encourage various aspects of the arts: Visual Arts, Dance & Theater, Vocal Performance and Writing.
Coldwater Creek Scholarship The Festival's Education Committee awarded its $1,000 Music Scholarship, funded by Coldwater Creek, to Sandpoint High School Senior Hailey Fuqua, a talented pianist and vocalist who has studied classical piano for the past 11 years and won the Festival at Sandpoint/Angels Over Sandpoint Arts Scholarship for Vocal Performance last summer Hailey has also distinguished herself as an academic leader finishing in the top two percent of her class and was named an Idaho Top Scholar. This fall, Hailey is attending the Boston Conservatory where she will work toward her Bachelors of Music. She accepted her scholarship after her solo piano performance playing a piece by Chopin at the Festival's opening night Pops Concert on August 3rd. We are thrilled to acknowledge the potential of young musicians and to help fuel their dreams through this scholarship each year.	Hailey Fuqua
	The Festival at Sandpoint/Angels Over Sandpoint Fine Arts Scholarship The Festival at Sandpoint/Angels Over Sandpoint Fine Arts Scholarship was the result of The Festival teaming up with another local non-profit organization for the third year to present a scholarship opportunity to encourage community youth to excel in the arts. The scholarship rotates its focus annually to encourage various aspects of the arts. The 2006 scholarship was awarded in the area of Writing. This year's $1,000 scholarship recipient was Sandpoint High Sophomore Alli Brotherton, who wrote a compelling piece about diversity and tolerance. She wrote a fictional short story for the Festival's Family Concert program and was awarded her scholarship on August 6th. Future years will include awards in Visual Arts and Theater/Dance and Vocal Performance.
Instrument Assistance Program:
Our newest program, the Instrument Assistance Program, is expanding to meet the growing need for instruments in our schools. We are dedicated to making sure that every student who wants to play in their school band has the opportunity to do so. It is our goal to help every elementary and middle student who cannot afford to otherwise buy or rent an instrument. During the 2005-06 school year we were able to help every student who asked for our assistance by providing over 30 rental instruments to 6th graders in need. Since its inception, this program has also provided pianos for the Sandpoint Charter School and Washington Elementary, a trombone for Southside Elementary, an oboe for the Sandpoint Middle School, drum and cymbal sets for all Lake Pend Oreille school district elementary schools and repair kits for music teachers to help maintain instruments all schools. This fall the Instrument Assistance Program is in full swing to provide needed instruments to band students.
WORKING COOPERATIVELY TO BENEFIT KIDS IN THE ARTS: Rob Kincaid, founder of Flat Hat Productions, pledges his support to The Festival at Sandpoint's Executive Director Dyno Wahl, by donating 25% of the company's remaining debut season proceeds to the Festival's educational programs. Sandpoint's newest arts organization will present December 14 & 15, 2006 A Christmas Memory by Truman Capote. If arts programs do more together, everyone will benefit," said Kincaid. Information and tickets for Flat Hat productions are available at www.flathatproductions.com.   Do you have an old instrument gathering dust in your closet? You could help a young musician and make a tax-deductible donation. The Festival's new Instrument Assistance Program reconditions and donates instruments to local elementary and middle schools so that students who cannot afford to buy or rent instruments can play in the band. Please give us a call at (208) 265-4554 if you can help us with this project