**Update!** The event was a huge success. We hosted 275 people and raised almost ,000, which will be divided between Mancos FoodShare and Mancos Pay It Forward, with the money earmarked for Western Excelsior Plant Employees. Thanks so much to all sponsors involved!!!
Alpacka Raft Partners with Local Nonprofits to Organize 1st Mancos Valley River Film Festival To Raise Funds for Excelsior Plant Employees
Ticket information coming soon! Stay tuned for regular updates on our FB event page.
At Alpacka Raft, we feel strongly about giving back to our local community. And so we recently decided to partner with Mancos FoodShare, Mancos Pay It Forward, and Mancos Valley Resources to bring the 1 Annual Mancos Valley River Film Festival to town Saturday July 15. All proceeds from this festival will be earmarked for Western Excelsior Plant employees who lost their jobs when the plant burned down early May 2017.
Because it was the biggest employer in Mancos, the loss of the Excelsior Plant is a huge blow to our community. It’s not just the 100+ people who lost their livelihood; it’s also their families. We had already been planning to start an annual film festival series in Mancos to benefit local nonprofits in Montezuma County, so we got into high gear and will do the first film fest this summer. Various local nonprofits immediately got on board.
The Mancos Valley River Film Festival will show a mix of movies including everything from whitewater paddling and fly fishing to kayaking and river conservation. Most films have already been decided on, and we’re pleased to announce that we will be premiering the short film Waiau-Toa Odyssey, an action-packed award-winning film from New Zealand.
Directed by Simon Waterhouse, this film features mountain bikers and packrafters (aka. “bikerafters”) Damian Stones and Dean Parker. It won “Best Locally-Made Film” at the 2017 New Zealand Mountain Film Festival. Additional films have been submitted by local Durango filmmaker Nathan Shoutis as well as by Colorado-based nonprofits American Rivers, a national organization with a base in Durango, and Rig To Flip, out of Steamboat Springs.
Stay tuned for details! If you would like to donate to the silent auction, please contact Lizzy Scully at Alpacka Raft, lizzy@alpackaraft.com or 303-903-2768.