It’s been a while since our first Field Trip to All World Acres in January and people are wondering what’s happening down the road. We (that’s Carmen and I) have been talking about just that and so much more. I want to start with the so much more.
The most important part of our reflections is the gratitude we have for everyone who helped make the Field Trip a success. We have undying gratitude to Richard for believing we could pull off our first little gathering and letting us use his land and facilities. To Scott at the Groovelink Cafe for making his cuisine available through the event. His show of support and dedication to nomadic life has inspired and strengthened many a gypsy.
Thanks to our volunteers and and workshop presenters, we could not have had such a great experience without you. You have set the groundwork and the bar for future events.
Most of our thankfulness goes to all the nomads who showed up and stayed with us and to those who just came out for the day as well. All of our planning and coordinating would be for nought were it not for you. We had a lot of fun seeing old friends and meeting new ones. Thank you for your patience and your suggestions and your help whenever needed. It was a true joy building this community with you all.
Thanks to our magnificent entertainment. Having Josh back at AWA was heartwarming for those of us who know him and rewarding for those who just met him.
RJ Howson. What can we say? We asked RJ to come up and play for us the first Saturday night and we kind of expected him and a couple of Sarasota’s fine collection of local musicians to play for us on our little palette stage. Well, RJ brought half of Dickey Betts old band, Mike Kach and Steve Camilleri, and one of SW Florida’s best bassists, Chuck Reilly. They totally blew us away. Thank you RJ for making that night so special.
We were super blessed to have numerous nomads on our stage as well. Katie Allesandra on one Friday. DJ’s KTTK Love spinning both Friday nights and Mike Dolan led us in our open mic night. Mike was a true joy around the campfires as well.
The last but not least on the list of entertainers is the last Saturday band, The Grindstone Sinners. All I am gonna say is WOW.
Oh my let’s not for get the amazing fire and flow show brought to us by Hunter and his amazing troupe of flow artists.
We learned a lot from our first little gathering. As we suspected what nomads want most is a sense of community. Some of our best times at the Field Trip was around the fire pit and the dinner table. We found out that everyone wants to learn and that they like the idea of learning communally and vs dictatorially.
Nomads Unite started with the idea of providing a place for nomads to gather safely in Florida in the winter, have a little party create a community. We wanted everyone to be welcome and to feel free to be themselves in a safe environment. Over the last year our mission has changed a little.
Many of us choose to live nomadic life. We like the unpredictability and the excitement of being free to go where we want. Not everyone out here feels that way nor did they get here by choice. There are a lot of people forced into living in their cars and vans and busses and RVs because of the current economic situation. These are people who need communities like Nomads Unite more than most. They need education and often little help in physical form. Nomads Unite wants to help these people.
Nomads Unite wants to hold more Field Trips in the future. We want to help nomads wherever we can through workshops and discussion groups. We want to show people how we do what we do as well as why. We want to coordinate a network of nomads, land owners, mechanics, builders and others who are willing to be a part of the community through support and even sometimes charity. We hope to even own some land someday. We want to do all this while having fun at the same time.
We want to provide a safety net for all nomads because we understand that hard times fall on us all. We understand that all this will take money and possibly a lot of it. It will be best for us to become a non-profit eventually.
In the meantime we will be setting up as an LLC. We will be seeking out sponsors to hold events designed to fundraise. We will be crowdfunding to raise monies for becoming a non-profit. We will be seeking grants and other forms of assistance. We may even go door to door. Financial transparency will be paramount and we will have open books even while operating as a business in the beginning.
We are looking for a bus to rebuild and renovate as workshops during and in between the Field Trips. Once done we will sell it to raise funds and to buy maybe a van to renovate the next time. We have lots of ideas.
We ask that you help too. Keep talking to others about Nomads Unite and coming to our events. We ask that you volunteer whenever you can. Again, we stress that Nomads Unite is not only about you but it is possible because of you. If you have any ideas or thoughts let us know. we are always willing to listen.
In the immediate future we will be updating the website and seeking out new places to gather. We will be having another Field Trip to All World Acres in January which we will be announcing dates for very soon.
It is through community and cooperation that we all thrive and travel safely. See you down the road.
