La Kermesse Franco-Americaine Festival Explained

La Kermesse Franco Americaine Festival
Native Name Lang:fr
Venue:Saint Louis Field[1]
Location:Biddeford, Maine
Organizers:[2]
Website:[3]

The La Kermesse Franco-Americaine Festival is a festival in Biddeford, Maine, which celebrates the state's French and French Canadian heritage. It is colloquially shortened to 'La Kermesse' .[4] La Kermesse began in 1982 with the motto "C'est Le Temps" .[5]

History

Established in 1982, La Kermesse has been a celebration of French Canadian culture in Maine with live music, games and entertainment.[6] In 1997, the Festival shifted to include all groups in the city. Throughout its history the festival has used a green frog as its mascot and pin-back buttons to confirm entry.[7] These buttons get changed every year and so people collect and trade them. Fireworks are also a prominent feature of the festival.[8] After being postponed by COVID-19 in 2020,[9] La Kermesse returned in 2022.[10]

Struggles

In 2009 and 2010, the Festival faced significant financial difficulties and nearly shut down.[11] After the festival survived these difficult times, the COVID-19 pandemic caused the festival to be postponed in 2020 and 2021.[12]

References

43.4798°N -70.465°W

Notes and References

  1. Web site: 2016-06-14 . Biddeford's La Kermesse festival to return to city field six years after being banned over damage . 2023-05-19 . Bangor Daily News . en-US.
  2. Web site: La Kermesse Board of Directors . 2023-02-05 . www.lakermessefestival.com . en.
  3. Web site: La Kermesse Festival . 2023-02-05 . www.lakermessefestival.com . en.
  4. Web site: June 26, 2023 . Kermesse . 2023-06-26 . Wordreference.com . fr, en.
  5. Web site: Gotthelf . Liz . La Kermesse Festival back with full line-up of activities . 2023-02-05 . sacobaynews.com.
  6. http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_product=ME&p_theme=me&p_action=search&p_maxdocs=200&p_topdoc=1&p_text_direct-0=0EAE9BB6CDC38188&p_field_direct-0=document_id&p_perpage=10&p_sort=YMD_date:D&s_trackval=GooglePM La Kermese shifts focus to diversify the traditional French festival this year
  7. Web site: Worthing . Abigail . 2019-03-31 . LaKermesse reveals 2019 button . 2023-03-10 . Portland Press Herald.
  8. Web site: WGME . 2019-06-20 . Rain cancels La Kermesse block party, fireworks in Biddeford . 2023-03-10 . WGME . en.
  9. https://www.pressherald.com/2020/05/03/la-kermesse-canceled-this-year/ La Kermesse cancelled this year
  10. Web site: Wells . Tammy . 2022-06-16 . Bonjour, La Kermesse Franco Americaine Festival . Hello, The Franco-American Frog Festival . 2023-03-10 . . French, English.
  11. http://www.pressherald.com/news/biddeford-festival-wont-be-canceled_2010-04-27.html Biddeford's Franco festival won't be canceled
  12. https://wgme.com/news/local/biddefords-la-kermesse-festival-postponed-until-2022-due-to-pandemic Biddeford's La Kermesse Festival postponed until 2022 due to pandemic

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