Ruth Jones McVeigh Obituary
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“Keep on keeping on;” Ruth Jones’ legacy as founder of the Mariposa Folk Festival
Ruth Jones McVeigh, founder of the Mariposa Folk Festival, has passed away.
A passionate fan of folk music, she and her former husband Dr. Casey Jones started the Mariposa Folk Festival in 1961. Ruth grew up playing the piano and even throughout the Great Depression her mother would find ways to pay for her lessons. A native of Nova Scotia, Ruth moved to Orillia, Ontario with her husband in the late 1940s to raise their family. Ruth was not only a mother and wife but a decorator, gardener, and renovator. A go-getter and hard worker Ruth built the family house a patio by digging out the backyard and laying the concrete herself.
After attending a meeting held by the Chamber of Commerce pushing small towns to find their “tourism hook” Ruth was inspired to find Orillia’s. As she lay in bed sick one day she thought of the idea of creating a folk festival for her sunshine town. Current Mariposa Folk Festival President, Pam Carter commented, “A strong woman with an inspiring vision and plenty of determination Ruth worked tirelessly to get the word out about Mariposa.” With $250 of their own savings Ruth and Casey started planning for the first festival to be held in the summer of 1961. She sent letters, wrote press releases, gave interviews, and even created a promotion on all milk deliveries to summer cottages to ensure her project was a success. Needless to say Ruth created and fostered an atmosphere that made Mariposa a festival that audiences from all over looked forward to. Not only did Ruth dedicate her finances and time she made sure that the festival highlighted an all-Canadian line-up. Ruth’s love for her country and folk music were the perfect inspiration.
In 1964, Ruth left Orillia for Toronto for a short period of time before she moved to New York City and then west to Vancouver. Once Ruth had settled in Vancouver she took a crack at writing. Her creative mind, paired with her range of life experiences made her a successful and thoughtful author. Ruth traveled across the country promoting her books and over the course of her life Ruth wrote Fogswamp, Close Harmony, and Shifting Ground. Her books mirrored the hardships she had endured in her relationships and her encounters as well as highlighted her passion for music.
Throughout her time living in various parts of the world she was always in touch with the Mariposa Folk Festival and came to its rescue in 1987. When Ruth heard the festival was at risk, she advocated for it to open its gates for another year. Her sheer presence at a festival general meeting changed the entire outcome – once again, Ruth had saved Mariposa.
Ruth will always be remembered for her attendance at the 2005 festival when the Hall of Fame was introduced and she was an honorary inductee. The smile beaming from her face as she held her plaque was a reminder of her appreciation for music and how much the festival truly meant to her.
In her later years Ruth did everything she could to attend the festival when she couldn’t drive herself. One year she even hitched a ride to Orillia with a performing musician. While attending the 2013 festival she recounts, “A lot of the stuff that’s happening politically and sociologically will be translated into folk music because that’s what it is. It has variations, I was very upset one year when there was a lot of rock, but there’s so many crossovers now. There’s country-rock and country-folk and what not. So, I don’t care as long as people are expressing their views and loving one another, which is what happens at folk festivals.” The culture of connection, expression, and love of folk Ruth had fostered for the festival was something she put into practice every single day.
Ruth will be remembered as dedicated, funny, smart, and as the mother of the Mariposa Folk Festival, as well as an author, a mother, and a wife. As Ruth would always say, “keep on’ keeping on.” Carter added, “The Mariposa Folk Festival will remember her legacy and her integral part in the foundation of the festival, without Ruth we wouldn’t have this event.” She leaves behind 6 children, her grandchildren, great-grandchildren, and the festival’s traditions that she created and loved. Carter remarks, “more than 65 years later, Ruth’s vision will continue to create magical moments for the people of Orillia and those who attend the festival. When a woman like Ruth passes we have the opportunity to reflect on her impact and the memories she’s helped create.”
