The 2024 Hepburn Swiss Italian Festa is looking for amicis – or friends.

The Festa is after 100 community supporters prepared to donate $100 to be recognised as a Festa Amici and provide a solid $10,000 financial base to help guarantee the future of the Swiss Italian Festa.

People can donate to the Swiss Italian Festa Bank Account – BSB: 633000, A/C Number: 117944470 with their name and email, or head to www.swissitalianfesta.com.au

The Hepburn Swiss Italian Festa is a community festival that celebrates the enduring contribution of Swiss Italian migrants who came to the Hepburn Springs and Daylesford region during the 1850s gold rushes.

These Italian speakers came from the villages and towns on either side of the Swiss Italian border. Into a world of mutton, potatoes and beer, they brought salami, pasta and wine.

The Hepburn Swiss Italian Festa was first staged in 1993 and has run for more than 25 years.

Daylesford’s Swiss Italian Festa is among more than 240 organisations set to share in $1.8million through the state’s Multicultural Festivals and Events Program and Regional Multicultural Festivals and Events Fund.

Announcing the funding in recent days, Member for Macedon, Mary-Anne Thomas says it will help bring Victorians together to learn about cultural identities and celebrate the vibrant diversity that makes up the state.

Grants will support community organisations to host festivals and events from 1 July to 31 December 2024 to share and celebrate culture, build social connections and to preserve our state’s proud cultural diversity.

Hepburn Springs Swiss & Italian Festa Inc has secured $7500 to help stage the annual Hepburn Swiss Italian Festa.

Member for Macedon, Mary-Anne Thomas: “Congratulations to the team at the Swiss Italian Festa, this local festival celebrates our multicultural community and brings people from across the state to visit our fantastic region.”

The funded organisations represent the diverse cultural landscape of Victoria with 200 ethnicities and more than 70 faith groups supported through the latest round of the Multicultural Festivals and Events program.

Minister for Multicultural Affairs Ingrid Stitt: “Ensuring Victoria’s diverse communities have every opportunity to celebrate their culture is key to strengthening social connection, inviting all Victorians to learn about and embrace different cultures.”

“This funding is all about supporting multicultural communities, and fostering a diverse and inclusive society where everyone is celebrated and feels welcome.”

Locals and visitors celebrated the Hepburn region’s strong Swiss Italian heritage over the weekend with a bumper turn-out recorded for the Swiss Italian Festa.

The street parade particularly proved to be a crowd-pleaser complete with traditional effigies and live pipe band music. The Local went along to soak in the festival vibe and capture a bit of the colour and verve of the cultural feast.

The weekend-long celebration attracted many visitors and locals who boast personal Swiss Italian heritage, and featured traditional and artisanal food and wine, live performances, art shows, heritage tours and a bit of bocce to boot.

The Festa celebrates the enduring contribution of Swiss Italian migrants who came to the Hepburn Springs/ Daylesford region during the 1850s gold rushes. These Italian speakers came from the villages and towns on either side of the Swiss Italian border. Into a world of mutton, potatoes and beer, they brought salami, pasta and wine.

The early Swiss Italians recognised the quality of the local mineral springs and lobbied to protect them from the destructive practices of the prospectors. They started building stone houses with cellars and wells. They planted grape vines, olive trees and orchards. Australia’s first pasta factory was built in 1859, and still stands in Hepburn.

Words & file image: Donna Kelly

Hepburn’s Swiss Italian Festa is back after a three-year hiatus. From Friday, October 27 to Sunday, October 29, the region will come alive with a vibrant celebration of heritage, culture and lifestyle – with the theme Viva La Festa 23!
Coordinator Emma Ireland said she had been involved with the community festival in 2019 but with Covid, it had ground to a halt.
“I was all ready to go and then Covid happened. I was really looking forward to bringing it back to its heyday, it used to have a crowd of 20,000, and then all these years later I had time to help with community events, and that was Words in Winter and then the Swiss Italian Festa.
“I pulled in all the people I spoke to way back then and said ‘do you want this festival?’ and they all did, it is such an important cultural event. And I have two kids, one who doesn’t know anything about the festa and the other who has done the parade and was part of the performace at the amphitheatre and remembers the fireworks.
“And I thought about all the newcomers to the town and the kids who have grown up with such a significant festival. It used to be the biggest we had. I saw it in its shadow form and thought it might disappear and I wanted to get involved and have those stories told again.”
Emma said she had a lot of support from schools, teachers and the community with significant funding from Hepburn Shire Council and plenty of help from the Daylesford Community Opportunity Shop, Carol White at Lavandula, Liam Thornycroft at Beppe Restaurant and Daylesford Rotary, to mention a few.
“For those who haven’t experienced the festa, please come down and be part of the parade on Saturday and the family day at the amphitheatre, and then Sunday which is our lantern parade and fireworks. It is nice to gather again, it’s been a long time.”
Daylesford Primary School vice-principal Trudi Blick said she had been involved in the festa for at least 20 years, as the Italian teacher at the school. “It’s a really important festival and provides a valuable forum for students to showcase their Italian
learning, offer a real purpose for that learning, and to be involved in the community.
“All the community and schools get together for the parade in particular, and they
can perform and showcase their learning. It is a really valuable festival for our town and for us to celebrate our Swiss Italian history.” Link: www.swissitalianfesta.com