What a difference a weekend makes.
Last week the NAPAH Ethnic Village south of Gateway was an empty tent.
By Monday, it had become a three-ring circus.
Thousands of visitors were showing up to support the five ethnic groups with booths at the venue: Native Americans, Asians, Pacific Islanders, African-Americans and Hispanics. NAPAH's Ethnic Village has gone from vacant aisles to "no vacancy" signs.
"It's been wonderful," says Sola Fauolo, a Pacific Islander representative on the NAPAH board. "Because of reports in the newspapers and television, we've had a lot of people come by to support us. One old man came in and gave us $6. That was all he had in his wallet. Little kids have been coming in and throwing quarters in the baskets."
Last week the village was struggling to pay its bills. The heat was even shut off for a spell. It looked like the whole enterprise might go belly-up. And though NAPAH officials caution that things are still touch-and-go, the momentum has clearly shifted.
"We made some commitments in contracts up front that we didn't understand well enough," said Dottie Henderson, coordinator for the African-American community. "They are currently reworking those. And from what I've read, we weren't the only ones in a slump last week. Things started slowly for a lot of people."
Right now, the vendors themselves are benefiting most from the influx of people. Food concessions, especially, are doing a brisk business. Money for rent and operating expenses must come from other sources. Donations are currently being petitioned at the door as donations. Monday night there were plans to charge a $5 admission fee. And though hundreds of dollars are coming in, including $5,000 from a local business and some $2,500 from the community, Ivoni Nash of the Pacific Island contingent says, "We have our fingers crossed we'll get some bigger help."
With most government offices shut down for President's Day, the moment of truth was set for Tuesday when a full discussion of debts could begin.
The village project began with a lot of fanfare last summer. Some big names were being floated around as possible performers at the venue. As fund-raising dragged, however, organizers had to scale back. Antoine "Big Dog" Carr was brought in to help spark interest. Literature was distributed. But a sluggish first couple of days last week had the village teetering. Mayor Rocky Anderson dropped by to drum up some publicity for the venue at midweek. And organizers themselves began to find ways to funnel the large crowds through ? instead of around ? the market, by using more strategic signs, flags and even a teepee. Finding someone to provide a generous donation to bail the village out is the ideal, but for now, the generosity of the work-a-day crowd is what has filled the coffers and hearts of NAPAH.
"Sometimes people will drive up, leave their car running and run in with a donation," says Fauolo.
With a little luck, NAPAH hopes one of those people running in this week will have a big check in hand.
E-MAIL: jerjohn@desnews.com