PINEWOOD, S.C. — Pinewood is expected to get lots of visitors over the next few days. BirdFest, a music festival, begins Friday for the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic.
"It has become a family reunion of sorts," Festival Director Barrett Smith said. "It’s taken on a real family atmosphere in that families will have a good time but it actually is a larger BirdFest family that grows every year."
Smith started the bluegrass music festival in 2002.
After taking a three-year break during the pandemic, Smith is back in Pinewood preparing for the two-day event.
"We decided that BirdFest could be something that really helps this community and something for the community to be proud of here," Smith said.
With about 500 people in the town along the Clarendon County and Sumter County border, Smith said the festival is expected to bring in up to 2,500 people.
"We just like to bring a bunch of people here and show them how pretty it is and how kind the people are and, you know, to give them a reason to come here and just read some more traffic through the area," Smith said.
It’s been a goal since the festival first began and, now, Smith is getting some help. David Wielicki with the South Carolina Waterfowl Association is a new partner.
"Our mission is to conserve and enhance our wildlife resources and also to pass on our conservation heritage to the next generation," Wielicki said.
It's why he is letting Smith use the wildlife center as the new location for BirdFest.
"They provided the venue and a whole world of infrastructure that we didn't have before," Smith said. "So, partnering with the Waterfowl Association is a huge leap for BirdFest in general."
The hope is that people will get an opportunity to appreciate nature and the outdoors as they listen to different bands and enjoy food from local vendors.
"The future of wildlife conservation, the future of wise-use sustainability, depends on educating the next generation," Wielicki said.
The festival is Friday and Saturday, headliner for both nights is Steep Canyon Rangers. Tickets are available online and in person at the gate. Wielicki said a portion of the proceeds will go to the Waterfowl Foundation to help provide scholarships for the organization's child education camps.
"For me, personally, it's a big deal. I mean, I'm a native South Carolinian and now I've made a career playing music and dealing in the music world all over the country," Smith said. "So, to bring all of the great music and art that I've seen in the country back here to South Carolina in such a beautiful spot. It's an honor."