04/03/2025
With summer approaching, everyone's asking: Where has that Wednesday Concert gone!? We're sorry to say, but after almost 10 years of serving Radford, West End Wednesdays has come to a close.
WEW began as a summer concert series in cooperation with the Radford Farmers Market in order to offer an evening weekday market. We wanted to showcase local & regional musicians, offer a produce & craft market, and serve up some delicious food & drink - all in the name of comradery & community, and most importantly to make it inclusive and FREE.
We relied on donations, sponsorships, and partnerships to host our events. The team was entirely volunteer. The events barely broke even - meaning each month we basically had to start from scratch or just a couple hundred dollars and these events were upwards of $2k each towards the end. We didn’t qualify for many grants, and honestly our non-profit didn’t have money to hire a grant writer. We spent our first two years under the Chamber of Commerce & then became an independent event series under the nonprofit organization MountainTrotter Arts.
Contrary to common misconception, WEW was not a Radford City or Tourism event & we didnt receive funding from them - It was wholly independent.
After the pandemic, we came back strong, but then hit some road bumps: The arrival of competing summer concerts, a limited pool of sponsors only being able to give but so much, and lack of cooperative efforts along with a dip in attendance - the event became financially unviable. We adapted to create a single weekend event full of music, arts, and food, and had a wonderful time seeing the community come out in support. Around this time is also when our volunteer director “retired,” and MTA and its events had to take a pause as we searched for a new leader.
We are proud of what we brought to Radford and proud to know that our local restaurants, businesses, lodgings, and community benefited from our little crazy idea!
Thank you to our partners Glencoe Mansion, Museum & Gallery Ballpark Signs & New River Valley Rent-All for their years of dedication, belief, and commitment. A thank you to our sponsors & donors - we couldn’t have done it without you. And of course thank YOU, residents of Radford and the NRV, for the wonderful memories we will cherish forever. We encourage nonprofits & organizations to keep going & making our community amazing.
Cheers
💕🍻🫶🏻
