Annual Small Town Star Trek Festival Needs Your Support
Dustin Baker
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Iowa Star Trek Party Needs Financial Support
About four hours west of Chicago, the town of Riverside, Iowa, holds an annual Star Trek festival, aptly named TrekFest.
In the 2009 film Star Trek, Captain James Kirk was referenced as a son of Riverside. And before that, Riverside nominated itself as the birthplace of the fictional Kirk based on backstory from the franchise.
Now, TrekFest needs a little bit of help. On a GoFundMe page, organizers stated:
“After thirty-six years of Trekfest, the U.S.S. Riverside (NCC-1818) and her shuttle craft are in desperate need of dry dock. (for the non-nautical people, that means repair) Like all small towns across this great nation, funding for any discretionary projects can be a challenge. The responsibility of upkeep for the U.S.S. Riverside and other assets for Trekfest fall upon the 100% volunteer organization called the Riverside Area Community Club (RACC). While the City of Riverside does supply some financial support for events, RACC is responsible for the maintenance of assets and the actual festival operations. We do not have the manpower to do fundraising all year round. Just like you, we have homes and families to take care of as well other commitments to contend with (Church, school, children, jobs, and much more). Please consider our request seriously. We need your help!”
TrekFest is composed of all kinds of stuff: live entertainment, a parade, sports tournaments, kids’ activities, and food galore.
The summer townwide gala is important to the small Iowa community, and you can help here.
Dustin Baker is a political scientist who graduated from the University of Minnesota in 2007. His odyssey with Star Trek starts from beginning to finish, watching ‘The Original Series,’ all the way to the present day. Listed guilty pleasures: Peanut Butter Ice Cream, ‘The Sopranos,’ and The Doors (the band).
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