An annual scavenger hunt/litter pick-up initiative for Missoula and the Bitterroot Valley!!!

Follow the Fun on Instagram @backtothemother Participate with our # #gnomefestmissoula

This year's event is going to look a little different. We are looking for more help to make the magic of Gnomefest. If you want to participate in the hiding and even making the gnomes and palm stones, come meet the crew at the Clark Fork River Clean Up.

April 22nd Back to the Mother will be Sponsoring Jacobs Island as part of the clean up. This will be a customer appreciation event so bring a growler and gear up to get this dog park litter free! We will be doing free pours and give backs to our customers. We will also be doing a mini scavenger hunt for anyone that comes to participate, but the real intent of this meet up is to build a team of folks to participate in the larger Gnomefest event later in the season. If you want to be apart of the fun and magic of Gnomefest, we would love to meet you there! We will be hosting Gnome making workshops and be signing up for folks to help us hide gnomes and palm stones as part of the event!!! Folks can sign up for the specific locations and will be able to pick up gnomefest care packages close to the event to be distributed across Missoula. We want to bring the fun to everyone this year and hide items all across Missoula in public spaces, parks, trails, and fun random places that spark your joy. Get excited folks! This years event is going to be so much fun and your welcome to be apart of it!!!

Gnomefest Meet Up
April 22nd

What is GnomeFest?

Date of the Main 2023 Scavenger hunt event to be determined!!!
Stay posted on Social Media @backtothemother

GnomeFest was originally a program at a summer camp in Lake Como, Pennsylvania. One of our worker owners, Drew Holman, Worked at that camp for 5 summers and eventually became the head instructor of the Pottery Program. He took the existing GnomeFest, which was nothing more than the kids who loved pottery making gnome inspired projects and transformed it into an activity that every camper could get excited about. And they did! It went viral! Drew, with the help of those pottery kids, made hundreds of ceramic gnomes that would be hidden all over the camp. If you found one, you could keep it! Or, you could hide it again and know someone else would get to experience the joy of having that same experience. Some of the gnomes had indicators that it was a prize gnome! If someone found one of the prize gnomes, they got to claim Gnome inspired hand made ceramic wares made by the staff of the pottery studio. In addition to that, cabins got "gnome points" for banning together to pick up litter around the camp property. The camp went from having candy wrappers all over the place to being pristine within a week!

It Inspired social responsibility and a spirit of kindness among the campers! This is what we aim to do bring to Missoula and the surrounding area! We need this mindset now more than ever! We will be hiding these gnomes at trail systems, city parks, and many Missoula Hangouts.

It's our way of giving back to our community. We wanted to create an activity that is open air and family friendly but all ages could get excited about. We all need a chance to play and to let our inner child have that outlet for expression. It's our gift to our community.

We are looking forward to watching the adventures that unfold! Make sure to tag us in your social media posts by using @backtothemother and #gnomefestmissoula to link up with other gnomefest adventurers! There will be prizes for finding specific gnomes and for gathering sets of gnomes that will be hidden in separate places! Details are below.

The mission of GnomeFest is in alignment with how we do business. Our hand crafted Kombucha is bottled in reused glass that we get from Bayern Brewery. We are the only kombucha company in the country that does this, and we are proud of it!!! We never wanted to bring our product to the market in a single use package and because of Bayern Brewing, that became a reality. We are dedicated to being as sustainable as possible. This means never becoming a national brand and focusing our sales on local sustainable markets. We are grateful for every bottle we keep out of the landfill and cycling from our craft brewery to your favorite grocery store and back again. Learn more about this program here!

Our Sponsors!

Meet last years Sponsored Artist!!!

On instagram @plaidbeaverco

Website:

https://plaidbeaver.co/

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Owned and operated by artist, Amanda Krolczyk, Plaid Beaver Co. is a combination of reclaimed wood art & ceramics. Using quality, resilient elements like centuries-old wood and clay, Amanda crafts made-to-order art for custom spaces in homes and businesses.

Utilizing materials from demolished or abandoned sites in Western Montana, all of Amanda’s art is truly unique. The roots of the business lie in its recognizable reclaimed wood art inspired by the landscapes of the rocky mountains.

Check out the GnomeFest Soundtrack!

We are hiding over 2000 items to be found during this second annual Gnomefest event! These items will include handmade gnome figurines as well as what we call palm stones. Theses items are pictured below

This symbol of the spiral centered in the palm is one that shows up all over the world in many different cultures. The spiral is used to infer the movement of energy. When the spiral is placed within a hand shape, it is believed to be emitting energy and is called a Shaman's Hand or Healer's Hand. This symbol shows up in both ancient Celtic traditions as well as native cultures of North and South America. The hand with a spiral on the palm is now most often seen as a symbol of reiki, or energy healing. [source]

Our intention is to offer a remembrance that we are all in this together in this wacky time of a global shift. We have all been through a lot over the past few years and we hope these palm stones will be a source of support for anyone that finds one! We honor and hold space for all cultures that have used the symbols of spirals and hands and wish these stones to be a source that unifies us in a time where it's so easy to become divided. With much love - the Brew Crew

Gnomefest Community Guidelines and Prize accepting procedure

Participants are encouraged to pick up litter found along the trails or parks while they are out looking for Gnomefest items -BECOME AN EARTH KEEPER
Please dispose of any litter that is collected through your home garbage/recycling services.
Stay aware of trail closures and conservation areas. It is important not to trample native wild flowers as many are endangered and protected!
Anyone that tags us in a social media post of people participating in Gnomefest litter pick-up by using #gnomefestmissoula and @backtothemother can claim a free bottle of kombucha at our farmer's market booth.
Participants can keep any Gnome or palm stone that they find, but consider rehiding gnomes and palms tones if you find more than one. Pay it forwards! Enjoy then fun you can have can by hiding these items for family or friends or even strangers! Bring joy to others! This spirit is why every bottle of our kombucha reads, "Dream to help others!"
Some Gnomes will be marked as prize gnomes and will be holding mushrooms or other items that will be highlighted with real Gold! - Turn these items in or show them to us at the Farmers Market to claim and pick out your prize!
A list and Pictures of prizes available will be posted below on this site page as well as our Instagram @backtothemother
Some gnomes will be attached to cryptocurrency-based offerings. Anyone that finds a gnome holding a golden coin should reach out to drew@backtothemother.earth to make arrangements to accept crypto-specific prizes.
Some Gnomes will be a part of sets (outlined below). if these sets are completed by either individual or by groups of individuals they can tag us in a picture (@backtothemother) of the completed set on social media by using #gnomefestmissoula. Participants that complete this task will earn a full 6 pack for each person involved in completing the set (one participant per gnome in the set).
Prizes can be picked up at our local farmer's market booth at the Clark Fork Market.
updates on the event can be found on our Instagram account story and feed (@backtothemother).
Not sure if a gnome you found is a prize gnome or not? bring it by our farmers market booth and find out!!!

List of Prizes!

16 oz of Yerba Mate from Yerba Montana
Yerba Montana T-Shirt
An Annual Membership to MUD's Tool Library
Various values worth of Bitcoin. Up to $100 (if you find the gnome holding a bitcoin! There are 3 out there!!!)
Various values worth of Etherium. Up to $100 (if you find the gnome holding an Etherium Token! There are 3 out there!!!)
A 6-month subscription to Soil Cycle's Composting Services
A branded Soil Cycle Hat
Hand made ocarinas Created by Drew Holman
Back to the Mother T-Shirts
6 packs of our Kombucha
A troy ounce of silver!