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Pa ge 3 0 T hu rs da y, S ep te m be r 1 7, 2 01 5 - T he IF P - H al to n H ill s - w w w .th ei fp .c a DRINK SOME BEER. DO SOME GOOD. Proceeds to FOOD4KIDS NOON - 6PM HeadForTheHills.ca SATURDAY SEPTEMBER 19 th TRAFALGAR SPORTS PARK HEAD FOR THE HILLS-- GEORGETOWN CRAFT BEER FESTIVAL Local services groups come together to 'raise a glass, drink some beer, and do some good' THINGS TO KNOW Here is a run-down of everything you need to know to make the most of your day at the first-ever Georgetown Craft Beer Festival. • Head for the Hills is Saturday, Sept. 19 from 12-6 p.m. at the Trafalgar Sports Park on Trafalgar Rd. and 17 Sideroad (Maple Ave.) in Georgetown. • Tickets are $20 online in advance or $25 at the door. Your ticket includes a customized beer stein and four tokens (redeemable for 4 oz. samples of beer). Additional tokens are $1 each. • 100 per cent of proceeds go to local charities, with this year's main charity being Food4Kids North Halton. Beer drinking has never been more ethical! • There are 23 craft breweries and cideries coming to share their finest brews with you. Of those 23, seven are less than a year old, just breaking onto the scene and ready to grow. These brand new beers will be in our "baby brews" section where you can be among the first to savour their unique flavours. • On site will be a variety of gourmet food trucks ready to take your taste-buds to the next level. A big hungry welcome to The Meatball Shoppe, Bestia, Gourmet Guyz, Mustache Burger, Untamed Chef, A Salt N Battered, and Georgetown's very own Sweetie Pies, Latitude and Uncorked. These mouth-watering eateries will happily give you and your friends a delicious meal to pair with your hand-crafted beer. David Ort, author of "The Canadian Craft Beer Cookbook," will be doing a cooking demonstration and book signing on-site as well, so you can even take the craft taste home with you. • Live music starts right away, with talented buskers taking the stage from 12-4 p.m. followed by local bands Dayfoot and Mountain Lion Trappers. • Head for the Hills is also putting on Giant Beer Pong. You and a team of friends can sign up to play your best buds in a giant game of beer pong. It costs $20 per person to play (or $50 for a team of three) and there are prizes galore for playing! • Free buses are available in Georgetown and Acton, stopping at the Acton GO Station, Glen Williams Park, Mold-Masters SportsPlex, Georgetown Fair- grounds and The Gellert Centre. Visit www.headforthehills.ca under "News" to see and print a bus schedule for you to use. There is also free parking and a taxi stand on-site to make sure you get where you need to go safely. It's almost time for local residents to "raise a glass, drink some beer and do some good." Such is the slogan for the inaugural Head for the Hills-Georgetown Craft Beer Festival, which is set to run on Sat- urday, Sept. 19 from noon to 6 p.m. at the Trafalgar Sports Park. The charity initiative,which is being headed up by the Kiwanis, Kinsmen, Lions and Rotary clubs, will bring together more than 20 craft brewers and cideries from all over the province, with proceeds be- ing donated to Food4Kids North Halton. "We wanted to create something really unique and really fun that would also at- tract a large amount of people from out of town," said Lois Fraser, a member of the event's marketing and communications com- mittee. "All of us run our own events, but we're frequently targeting the same people. So we met to talk about what we could do as a group effort." The service clubs are hoping to at- tract a crowd of about 2,000 people for the festivities. Those who attend will be treated to four samples of beer (four ounces each) and will receive a cus- tomized Head for the Hills beer stein. There will also be live music and a va- riety of gourmet food trucks on hand serving everything from braised brisket sandwiches to rainbow trout to "moose balls" (potato and cheese curd balls in gravy). In addition to having fun while sup- porting a good cause, organizers are hoping the event will also introduce guests who don't live in the area to the beauty of Halton Hills. Fraser said the event's rural location is unique as most beer festivals are held in cities. "I feel that our area is rather an un- discovered jewel. I think we're going to knock their socks off," she said. "I see this as ultimately becoming a bit of a homecoming, in addition to people coming from out of town." She explained the name Head for the Hills refers to the foamy head of a beer and also alludes to the festival's lo- cation in Halton Hills. Brewers will be coming from near, like Orange Snail Brewers in Milton, and far, such as Sawdust City Brewing Co. out of Gravenhurst. The event will feature a section for new, small breweries so that people can recognize them as up-and-coming, said Fraser. A few cider companies will also be sampling their product at the festival. Musical entertainment will be pro- vided by buskers between noon and 4 p.m., followed by local band Dayfoot and then headliner group the Moun- tain Lion Trappers. Organizers are planning a VIP event as well that's designed to connect brew- ers with businesses that may be poten- tial customers, like restaurant and pub owners. Fraser said the four service clubs are having a great time working together for a good cause. "It's a lot of fun to meet people from the other clubs because they're like- minded people. We all want to help the community," she said. "We're having a blast." The festival's proceeds will ben- efit Food4Kids North Halton, which provides packages of healthy food for kids aged five to 14 with limited or no access to food each week- end. According to the charity's website, there are 500 children in Halton who go through every week- end without food. Through Food4Kids, packages of healthy food are prepared by volunteers and delivered to schools each Friday to ensure children have nourishment over the weekend. Festival tickets can be pre-pur- chased for $20 or bought for $25 at the door. Additional samples will be avail- able to purchase for $1 each. Bussing will be provided throughout the event in Georgetown and Acton. Organizers are still seeking volun- teers for the day of the event. For more information on Head for the Hills, to get involved or buy tickets visit www.head- forthehills.ca. Trafalgar Sports Park is located at 11494 Trafalgar Rd., at the intersection with 17 Sideroad. By Melanie Hennessey Special to The IFP Cheers! From left are steering com- mittee members Mike Francis, Christopher Haid, Doreen Govas, and Linda Dilks. Photo by Ron Stiel