Another record-setting year for One Spark

Business

One Spark 2015 will go into the record books as the year more people than ever in the three-year history of the event came Downtown and the year that an exhibitor set a record for prize awards.

Organizers estimated 320,500 people attended the Tuesday-Sunday event in Downtown. That’s a 22 percent increase over the record estimated crowd in 2014.

With a new prize structure, Yoga 4 Change, the winner of both the $15,000 Juried Award and the Top-Voted Award in the Social Good Category, accepted two checks for a total of $32,001.11. It was the largest amount a project at One Spark has received.

The group’s mission is to bring people together through yoga for personal development and healing. Yoga 4 Change sends instructors to educate at-risk public school students, jail and prison inmates, and veterans groups.

Project Stuffee received the most individual contributions from attendees of the festival.

In addition to the $15,000 bonus for the No. 1 spot, the group that promotes children’s fitness received a total of $22,500.

Future Music Makers Youth Enrichment Program earned the $15,000 Juried Award in the Music Category.

Group member Fae Negeon de Lestang said the award will allow even more children to learn about music in the after-school program the group conducts,

“We’ll use the money to buy equipment to teach kids how to make their own music,” she said.

In addition to the $350,000 in crowdfunds and cash awards, attendees contributed $93,324.45 this year to the 530 creator projects, a more than 75 percent increase from 2014. Also, 224 projects chose to continue their crowdfunding through April 30 at onespark.com.

One Spark 2015 also was a hit for Downtown businesses who planned for the festival.

Jennifer O’Donnell, manager of the Chamblin’s Uptown bookstore and café, wasn’t surprised when she heard the new record crowd estimate.

“We surpassed our 2014 sales at 5 p.m. on Saturday,” she said.

Chamblin’s sold more beer than books during the festival, but O’Donnell said that’s OK. One Spark has become an annual marketing opportunity.

“I’m still amazed at how many people come in and say they didn’t know there was a bookstore like this Downtown,” O’Donnell said.

Cindy Platt opened her Grease Rags boutique two years ago along Monroe Street near Hemming Park.

She agreed One Spark brings people Downtown who don’t otherwise visit the urban core. The festival gives her store visibility that Platt is sure will pay dividends in the future.

“I was a volunteer the first year of One Spark and I’ve been a venue for the past two years,” she said. “Being a venue is well worth the $150 investment.”

One Spark juried winners

One Spark handed out six juried awards, one in each category — art, education, health and science, music, social good and technology. Each winning project received a $15,000 check. The juried award winners are:

• Art: The Grey Area

• Education: Getting Early Engineers Ready for Success

• Health and Science: Momentum – Obesity Treatment and Prevention for Tweens

• Music: Future Music Makers Youth Enrichment Program

• Social Good: Yoga 4 Change

• Technology: The Fastest Way to Change the Trash Guaranteed

Top vote-getters

There were 117,169 votes cast by attendees at One Spark and the top-voted winners also received additional awards of $15,000 in each category: art, education, health & science, music, social good and technology presented by Beeline.

The three top-voted creator projects in each category with crowdfunding and award totals are:

Art

1. Airing Grandma’s Laundry and Other Hush Hush Family Secrets: The Movie - $16,026.80, 802 votes

2. The Yarn Bomb, $909.01, 710 Votes

3. Let’s Tile Hemming Park, $907.73, 709 Votes

Education

1. Adventures of Moxie Girl, $16,423.69, 1,112 votes

2. Textbook Boomerang, 1,419.85, 1,109 votes

3. Pik My Kid, $1,058.81, 827 votes

Health and Science

1. The Polar Pod, $16,111.30, 868 votes

2. Olive My Pickle, $891.09, 696 votes