New Scottish festival scheduled for June in Ferndale

Organizers recently announced the Bellingham Scottish Gathering will be held at Hovander Homestead Park on Saturday, June 2nd. This will be the first year of what organizers hope will become an annual event.

Heather Richendrfer is organizing the festival which will celebrate Scotland’s culture according to a press release. Competitive dance, bagpipe bands and athletic events along with displays of Scottish animals, vendors and traditional crafts are planned.

The Bellingham Scottish Gathering event was recently awarded $11,000 in grant money from the 2018 Whatcom County Lodging Tax Fund.

Richendrfer has been active in the local Scottish community as the owner of a Highland dancing school for 43 years according to the press release. She also has organized past dance competitions at the Bellingham Highland Games and more recently at the Skagit Valley Highland Games and US Highland Dance Championship.

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Richendrfer is quoted in the news release, “The Bellingham Scottish Gathering allows me to use my expertise to establish this event as a world-class festival of Scottish culture while promoting and enhancing tourism in Whatcom County.”

Interested vendors and event participants are encouraged to contact her regarding opportunities to participate during the festival. Community volunteers to help with the setup and businesses interested in being a sponsor should also contact her she said. Richendrfer can be reached via email at dance@clanheather.com.

Past years saw the Bellingham Highland Games (BHG) held at Hovander Homestead Park but, during February 2017, organizers cancelled last year’s event citing financial challenges. No word from BHG organizers so far regarding the possibility of their event returning this year.