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Middfest chooses Botswana

The southern African country will be featured in October’s festivities.

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By Lauren Pack, Staff Writer Updated 1:27 AM Sunday, November 8, 2009

MIDDLETOWN — Middfest International is going back to Africa for the featured country in 2010.

Botswana, a land-locked country in Southern Africa, will be the focus of the three-day event next October.

The announcement was made Saturday night, Nov. 7, during the organization’s recognition dinner at the Manchester Inn & Conference Center.

Also during the event, highlights of the this year’s Middfest were revisited featuring Indonesia, including a film showing a dancer, fashion shows, food and educational displays.

Volunteers who received special recognition for their work in Middfest 2009 and well as past years were Nancy Clark and Michelle Piepgrass, science committee members; Lisa Wilson, a longtime volunteer who has worked behind the scenes on many committees, and Donna McDade, a cooking and quilt show committee member.

Middfest International is an annual three-day cultural event with dance, music and food from around the world, which has celebrated a different country each year since 1981.

Botswana is about the size of France, and is known for its diamonds, cattle, game parks and tourism, according to Middfest officials.

English is the official language, but Setswana is the national language, according to the Botswana Tourism Board. Its population is 1.6 million, as of a 1999 count, and its climate is semi-arid with a rainy season through the summer months, which runs from November through March.

Contact this reporter at (513) 820-2168 or lpack@coxohio.com.

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