The Rafferty Rumble was, at one time, a popular event in the city – a street dance that was initially held to celebrate the completion of Rafferty Dam.
It’s been some time since that event was held in Estevan, but now a committee is bringing it back for next year, and it will be much bigger than before.
The resurrected Rafferty Rumble will be held from July 26-28 at locations throughout the Estevan area. Not only will there be the street dance once associated with the rumble, but there will be sporting events, community activities and other attractions as well.
Josh LeBlanc, who is the head organizer of the event, said the weekend will feature a slo-pitch, flag football, ball hockey and soccer tournaments, as well as an event at the Estevan Motor Speedway. Plans are still in the works for golf and beach volleyball tournaments and a fishing derby.
“The weekend is being organized by many volunteers across the city, with co-operation from sports organizations, business owners, community members and members of the Estevan Art Gallery and Museum,” he said.
Downtown Estevan will be busy on July 27, he said, with a pancake breakfast at the Tower Café, a large street fair hosted by the downtown business association, and an artisan and art market and a music festival hosted by the Estevan Art Gallery and Museum.
The Ross LeBlanc Trio, Megan Nash, Nick Faye and the Deputies, El Guitaro and Fogdog have been confirmed for the musical entertainment. Additional bands will be announced leading up to the day, including headliners for the event.
The downtown show and shine will also return for the Rafferty Rumble.
“The idea behind this event is to revitalize and improve on a strong event our city has seen in years past,” said LeBlanc. “There has been a large interest for this to come back, and it is our hope that this event will provide an exciting summer opportunity for people in and out of our community, fill hotel rooms and raise money for some very worthy causes in town.”
Many of the organizations that are involved with the rumble are in need of funds for facility upgrades or programming. Others have faced major funding cuts and need funds to simply operate.
Drawing from his own personal experience, LeBlanc noted he is a part of the Estevan Art Gallery and Museum’s board, and the cultural agency needs some additional revenues due to funding cuts. They have previously brainstormed ideas for big fundraisers, and the Rafferty Rumble was one idea tossed around.
“This is one that I’ve heard about all the time,” said LeBlanc. “People talked about how cool it was and how much fun it was. So I had it in my back pocket until I was done with Savour the Southeast to decide if the Rumble should go or not.”
LeBlanc was a child back when the Rafferty Rumble was held, so he doesn’t remember much about it. His knowledge is based on what he has heard.
“We thought this would give us the opportunity to host the event, and grow the event, and that’s something we’re pretty excited about. So we think putting on a sports weekend, combined with a music festival downtown and all of that kind of stuff, as well as the market and the street fair, it’s going to be a pretty cool opportunity for people to check out,” said LeBlanc.
If other sports groups or other organizations want to be part of the Rafferty Rumble, they can contact LeBlanc for more information.
