Barton hired to oversee folk festival

One of the summer’s events folks look forward to is the annual Kiwanis Craft Fair and Folk Festival and this year, there are a few changes in store.

Held on the first full weekend in August, the event is now being handled by the Nature and Discovery Center and has been renamed “Wyoming Discovery Days.”

To keep everything running smoothly, the Nature and Discovery Center has hired Whitney Barton to oversee the organization of the event.

Fairly new to Thermopolis, Barton comes here from Utah, although she is originally from Northern California.

Her career has been working as a film, commercial, photo and event producer for the past 15 years with a main focus on film and photo production. In addition, she has done event coordination for large conventions.

“I am very happy to come back to my roots in a way,” she said. “I grew up in a very small town and I’ve missed feeling like I am part of a community and am so grateful to be able to be a part of this one.”

As of right now, Barton said they are moving forward with the planning and preparation of the event with rebranding being top priority.

“One of the biggest changes this year will be the name,” she said. “We are rebranding it to be called Wyoming Discovery Days.

“As in the past, we will have music, demonstrations, art activities, Wyoming authors, vendor booths, food vendors and storytelling, including ghost stories in the evening. We will also have a lot of family friendly activities available throughout the day.”

Barton said a website will be available soon with more information regarding the event which will include a vendor application form, event information, a schedule, and more.