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Community synergy brings band to Ramona area

The Wiyos of Brooklyn, N.Y., performed Nov. 16 at Hope Community Center in a private concert with nearly 140 in attendance.

Jessica Gilbert, one of the California Sisters of Ramona, organized the event.

“I saw The Wiyos this summer at the Smoky Hill River Festival in Salina,” she said, “and dreamed of having them come to Ramona for an event. I got so daring as to call their agent and asked how much it would cost to bring them here.”

The concert fee didn’t surprise Gilbert because this quartet’s performance and music are remarkable, she said. Their musical tastes range from jazz to Appalachian string bands, with particular emphasis on the music from the 1920s-30s.

But the little town of Ramona with only five streets and less than 100 people, didn’t even have a venue large enough to accommodate a Wiyos concert, let alone pay a performance fee. But this didn’t stop Gilbert.

“I believe in pursuing dreams,” Gilbert said, “and the band’s agent kept talking with me about a concert. The agent had no idea how ‘in the sticks’ we are,” she said.

As it turned out, the quartet was coming to Kansas in November for several concerts in major cities, and they just happened to have a free day. Their route from one concert to the next took them right by Ramona.

“They wanted a performance, and I wanted them here, so I conceived a way to pay for the concert. I called more than a dozen friends and business associates, and said they could invite 10 guests to this private concert if they made a donation of a certain amount. Everybody said ‘yes’. Even the sound system for the concert was procured the same way by area band, Justus, which generously offered their equipment.”

From beginning to end, the concert was a synergistic community effort. One-half of the concert sponsors came from Ramona, three from Hope, two from Marion, and one from McPherson.

Because Ramona didn’t have a large enough building for the concert, Gilbert turned to the neighboring town of Hope, seven miles north of Ramona.

Hope Community Center, previously a grocery store that had closed, was transformed from an empty downtown building into a community asset when First National Bank of Hope purchased the building in 2007. The center now is used for wedding receptions, meetings, and community events.

“Leon Coup, chairman of the board of First National Bank, was a great inspiration early on for my far-fetched dream to bring a New York musical group to the greater Ramona area,” Gilbert said. “He knows what it takes to make something happen, and immediately offered the community center. The bank was one of the sponsors and also provided beverages at the concert. Leon even arranged for his family and bank staff to serve.”

Gilbert with her sister, Pat Wick, provided a dessert bar for the event.

“We love making desserts,” Gilbert said. “Guests brought desserts, too, so we had quite a stunning collection of yummy treats to eat before the concert began.”

Gilbert and Wick, known as the California Sisters because they moved in 2000 from California to Kansas to live in the place of their ancestors, own and operate guest houses in Ramona.

“Our goal has been to keep Ramona on the map,” Wick said, the oldest of the sisters and Mayor of Ramona. “We’ve been creating events with the citizens of Ramona since our arrival and if we can’t accommodate an idea in our little town, we’ll take it to a neighboring one. Small towns have to work together — there’s no room for competition.”

The Wiyos will return in 2009 to the “greater Ramona area.” The concert, which again will be by invitation only, will be at a location yet to be determined. Gilbert also is organizing performance and workshops at nearby schools.

“The Wiyos stay at our guest houses when they’re here and it’s to their benefit to have several events in the area. It brings down the cost for groups wanting to hear them, and it’s efficient for the band,” Gilbert said.

The Wiyos will be in Ramona Sept. 13-15, 2009.

Anyone interested in being a sponsor or want the band to perform in their city should contact Gilbert or Wick at (785) 965-7110 or patandjess@californiasisters.com.

Last modified Nov. 26, 2008

 

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