P.E.I. festival seeks charming churches

Jumping off the success of P.E.I.'s award-winning Festival of Small Halls, a new Island-wide Christmas event is launching in November Festival in Charming Churches.

"I have driven by countless small churches in rural P.E.I. and often wondered, 'What do they look like inside? What are these gems? And what do they contribute to their community?'" Ray Brow, who is behind both events, told Mainstreet host Karen Mair.

• Festival of Small Halls attracts tourists

"As we discovered in Small Halls, there are all these gems around the Island that many people have never been to, and they turned out to be such a delight in that particular festival, that I feel the last undiscovered gems on the Island are the many churches that most of us never get inside of."

Is there a better season than the Christmas season to be charitable and to invite people in and to meet strangers and turn them into friends?- Ray Brow, festival organizer

Organizers are looking for churches from across the Island to participate in the festival, which will take place over three weekends in late November and early December.

Brow believes the Festival in Charming Churches will help the Island draw tourists in the winter season, as it's timed to run while the Island hosts four Santa Claus parades and a number of Christmas craft fairs.

"Is there a better season than the Christmas season to be charitable and to invite people in and to meet strangers and turn them into friends?" Brow said.

"This is an event that will feature storytelling in principle, followed by music ... and we want to have it in acoustically beautiful venues, so in churches that are known for really good sound and preferably for really good sight lines."

The event will feature 18 churches this year as the program gets up and running, but Brow said it could be expanded in the future.

The 2015 Festival in Charming Churches is a not-for-profit fundraiser. The churches share in the ticket sales and revenues, with the goal of contributing to the Syrian refugee crisis campaign.

"Why wouldn't you feel strongly about the refugees?" Brow said.

"We live in the most beautiful place on Earth. I personally feel that we can certainly accommodate a few more families. We have the best life on the planet, and I feel that we can share and I know the people involved in these churches feel exactly the same way."

Mainstreet airs weekdays from 4 to 6 p.m. on CBC Radio at 96.1 FM.