07/03/2024
Medieval Mayhem Rennaissance Faire 17 Years of Growth and 1000 Years of History Come to Life.
By Crystal Kanaley
Every July, for the past 17 years, the White Mountains have been transported back to an era where Kings and Queens ruled the realm and Merriment mixed with a little Mayhem spread throughout the land.
Medieval Mayhem Renaissance Faire started in 2007 as a one-time promotional event for a bit of place called The Greenhouse. It was a little local nursery with a small café and outbuildings that were rented out to independent contractors. Our Executive Director, Lady Bronwyn Hawke, was renting one of these sheds for her therapeutic massage business. One day, she was brainstorming ways to spread awareness about The Greenhouse and asked Lord Ivar for ideas. He said, "Do a Ren. Faire," and she said, "ahright" and the White Mountains haven't been the same since!
The first year was pulled together in two and a half months. There were only around 5-6 vendors, and about 500people passed through the gate. One group of people who visited from the Phoenix area booked rooms across the street and walked to the event in costume, encouraging others to follow to see what was happening. This group of people, later known as Dragon Realm, would become vital to the success of Medieval Mayhem, giving Lady and Ivar ideas support and working hard to help this little faire grow. Their leader, Tina Talkington, would become our Queen Julia and, as far as we know, was the first Native American to play a Queen at a Renaissance Faire.
The second year was a disaster. It was held in a poor location, had a meager attendance, and the local radio station's tower was hit by lightning, which caused us to lose months' worth of promotions. But there was some good to come of this year. This was the first year we had performances by Ghazaal Beledi and 3 Guys and a Bunch of Drums who would perform for us for years to come. After this, Lady Bronwyn contacted the Pinetop-Lakeside
Chamber of Commerce and told them of our need for a new location. Forty-eight hours later, we had a new location at Mountain Meadow Recreation Complex, which we would call home for the next decade. With the help of our Royal Court, The Dragon's Realm, and our Fighting Guild, which at the time was the Kingdom of Umbria of the Adrian Empire, Medieval Mayhem Renaissance Faire grew. By year 5, most of our attendees were coming up to the White Mountains from the Desert.
In 2015, Lady Bronwyn and Lord Ivar wanted to give the Faire a bigger purpose. They are both big proponents of education and believe that "Not all education looks the same," so they established a non-profit organization, now called The Mountain of Hope Foundation, which granted scholarships to local students who demonstrated a passion for their particular career but couldn't necessarily qualify for grants, nor could their families afford loans. They
worked to become a 501c3 tax-exempt non-profit and received their confirmation letter in 2016. Medieval Mayhem Renaissance Faire then became the foundation's annual fundraiser where people could "Escape from reality" and have "1000 years of history come to life". The Faire became a place where people could learn about history while having fun, and their proceeds would go to helping a noble cause.
2019 was the last year we would be at the Mountain Meadow Recreation Complex, as we would no longer be able to have our vendors, entertainers, and staff camp onsite. That was a deal breaker for us, so we hunted for a new location. The Show Low Chamber of Commerce invited us to return to Show Low, and we made plans to open the following year at our current location - Frontier Field Park. However, fate had other plans. Due to Covid 19, as many
in the entertainment business did, we were forced to close for the 2020 and 2021 seasons. This was particularly devastating because not only did we not have any income for those two years, but we also did not qualify for any of the aid many other companies received and quickly burned through all our reserves. So, we find ourselves essentially back to square one, working to raise funds, find donors, and garner awareness and support for providing
educational assistance to those in need.
Over the years, we have had very few applicants for our scholarship and even fewer donors, so Lady Bronwyn and Lord Ivar again put on their thinking caps and boldly decided to change the foundation's beneficiaries and expand assistance to all of Arizona. Having seen firsthand how many veterans and first responders do not receive the help they need after becoming disabled in the line of duty, they brought this idea to the board of The Mountain of Hope Foundation, who unanimously agreed to this change. We decided that our scholarships should go to our heroes, Arizona veterans and first responders who become disabled in the line of duty, to aid them with the costs associated with vocational rehabilitation that are not covered by other means so they can enter a new vocation and continue to support their families. We also offer to assist the immediate families of those who have fallen in the line of duty by creating a scholarship for spouses needing additional education to advance or change careers, enabling them to support their families independently. Lastly, we offer a seed funding scholarship for minor children of the fallen, ensuring their post-secondary educational needs.
Medieval Mayhem Renaissance Faire has changed a lot since 2007. Vendors, entertainers, and even our royal court members have come and gone. But one thing that hasn't changed is Lady Bronwyn and Lord Ivar's dedication to making this Faire an immersive educational experience and inspiring lifelong learning for all who attend.
So, we invite you to become a hero for our servicemen and women and those who serve and protect us every day in our Arizona communities and put their lives on the line every day to protect and serve us in our times of need. You can do this through the Mountain of Hope Foundation in many ways. Purchasing tickets to our annual fundraiser Medieval Mayhem Renaissance Faire, July 12 – 14, 2024, donating directly to The Mountain of Hope Foundation at https://www.mountainofhopefoundation.org/ , follow us on social media, and sharing our vision with your friends, family, and community about The Mountain of Hope Foundation and those we work to serve.
