Midwest Burners

Submitted by Alisha

Event Information

Theme

Fairytale Forest: A New Myth Untold 

Basic Details 

Happened on October 4th – 6th 2024 

at Little Tree Farms LLC 28379 Copps Chapel Road, Wooldridge MO USA for the third year at this location. 

Event Description

HullabalU is an all ages regional burn event held every October in central Missouri. Our smaller event size is more intimate and friendly than some larger events. We aim to be a harvest season family friendly campout where personal connection and family inclusion are the primary focus.

This year HullabalU hosted 58 people for an intentional community camping event.

56 attendees were adults and 2 under 18yoa.

Land Contacts

Emily Johnston:  1-573-529-5590  – emijohnson32@gmail.com 

Drew Scheneman: 1-573-529-4888  – drewscheneman@gmail.com

2024 EC Team

Sami White, Alicia Isdes, Erika Salmons

List of departments and brief descriptions 

• HQ – Volunteer hub and emergency department headquarters. Distribute
• supplies and monitor the walkies. Sunglasses and mustache optional.
• Medic – Manage sunscreen, bug spray, ice, bandages, etc. and stationed at HQ. Bonus points for kissing boo-boos.
• Gate – Check IDs, approve digital tickets and give out wristbands. You are
• the white blood cells keeping the nasty viruses out!
• Greeters – Education on the 10 Principles, event guidelines, and welcoming. Optional consensual naughtiness!
• Parking – Placement for campers and RVs, as well as organizing where all the vehicles are stashed for the event. If you like big trucks and you cannot lie, this job is for you.
• Fairy Tale Village – Where the Sparks work and play! Sparks are trained on how to work the event departments, and even have their own. A community kitchen area is also available here.
• FLOW – Organizes our fire performances. Get in the FLOW.
• Rangers – Our community safety resource. Experience preferred but not required, training resources provided prior to the event. Must be sober during your shift.
• InFUNstructure – This department manages erections. Land prep, community work days, shelter builds, signage, and building the effigy!
• Perimeter – Effigy perimeter Sand Cats.
• Sound Camp – The only amplified music for the burn and a central hub for the village.
• F.A.S.T. – Directs all things involving burning the effigy, and the scheduling of the Effigy burn night.

Volunteering 

30 volunteers with an estimated 300 hours were available for volunteers to sign up from all departments during the burn, 95 were completed. 

Participation 

• Theme Camps – 5 
• Estimated Displayed Art – 5
• Estimated Performers/Performing Groups – 40
• Mutant Vehicles – 0 
• Structure Burns – 1 
• Scheduled Events – 13

Art Grants 

Total number of art grants submitted and funded this year was 6.

Additional Information 

• 8 ticket holders indicated this was their first time attending a MWB burn.
• This year discounted tickets were extended to all leadership from other MWB events.
• We always attempt to accommodate participants with medical or health concerns, such as providing priority camping at special request, exceptions for re-entry for parents with minors, and providing at least one ADA toilet. The site overall can be challenging for people with diverse abilities so we are looking at how that can be improved for next year.
• The entire EC Team for 2024 was composed of women.
• Most of our participants are experienced burners, they were aware of and made accommodations for the smaller size this year, and less community services were needed overall as a result. Camps provided for each other and themselves very well this year. Very low / no incidence of Ranger reports. Our volunteer morale and morale overall was very high this year.
• Our single sound camp is a benefit for an event of our size, in that it reduces camp conflicts and it encourages community building and sharing of art. 
• We held a fundraiser this summer and earned money to purchase our own community tent.

Our top 3 challenges faced this year are 

1. Accessibility to site for ADA/RV/Larger vehicles and families
2. Attendance
3. Training new Leads and ECs