Fuzzy Bus

While many cities around the country have been doing their own First Night celebrations, these solitary efforts are part of a larger event, bringing together many places for the same cause. The cause is a simple one, and one that a good number of the population can get behind without argument, that of celebrating the calendar turning from one year to the next. In Salt Lake City, this has been a part of its own festivities for a number of years, but 2009-2010 saw something interesting happen.

Based on other models, like the Carnival de Quebec, Jeffrey Berke came in with a new idea, and one that might be the best local version of a winter event this side of the rockies. It’s called Eve , and it marks the coming of the New Year, but the idea is to make this much more inclusive. The earlier years’ parties saw adults participating in something that was able to unite a large portion of the population, but couldn’t include all, and that’s what Eve is setting out to do. It even has the potential to bring in people from out of town, come to enjoy a hotel Salt Lake is famous for, and see what the hospitality is like at a big public event.

It is a reasonable price, too, where $15 buys entry into the whole thing, including free transportation, that takes place over the whole city. There will be the usual counting down at midnight, to be sure, but what makes this one unusual is that party-goers don’t start gathering after dinner on the 31st, it begins on the 29th. It becomes a three-day affair, with lots of events and activities organized to bring together all the diverse communities that SLC contains, attracting people from all lifestyles, backgrounds, and points of view.

Any event that attempts to unite a community as one is worth applauding, but one that has the intellect and foresight to figure out ways to really do it, is one that’s worth attending.

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