Article in the Statesville Record & Landmark, March 7, 2006
Wanona Van Hoy left enduring legacy
by Donna Swicegood
To generations of bluegrass musicians and their fans, Wanona Rash Van Hoy was simply known as "Wansie."
Van Hoy, along with her husband, Harper, organized and ran the Ole Time Fiddler’s Festival each year in Union Grove.
She died on Saturday, but her legacy will live on through the festival and the music that she worked so hard to preserve.
The Rev. John Dawson of Lakeside ARP Church in Mooresville grew to know Wansie and Harper through music.
Dawson, along with his children, form the Dawson Family Band and have played at Fiddler’s Grove for years.
"She was the sweetest, most kind-hearted person I’ve known," Dawson said Monday.
He said it was through the love of music that he met the Van Hoys. "Wansie and Harper embraced me and my family, and she was the one that encouraged me and my children to form a band," he said.
Pal Ireland, another musician and a resident of Union Grove, said she had known Wansie all her life.
Ireland said she has fond memories of Wansie and Harper Van Hoy. "The first wedding I ever went to in my entire life was Harper and Wansie’s," she said.
Ireland described Van Hoy as the last of the Southern belles. "She was so gracious," she said. "She’s been an inspiration to everybody she came in contact with."
Like Dawson, Ireland said Van Hoy gave her all to preserve the old-time and bluegrass music that are a part of the fiddler’s festival.
In 2000, Wansie and Harper, along with the Fiddler’s Festival, were recognized as one of the state’s official Local Legacies. The Local Legacy project was initiated to document America’s grassroots heritage.
Ireland said the fiddler’s festival brought Van Hoy worldwide attention. Since her death was posted on the Fiddler’s Grove Web site, Ireland said, condolence calls have come in from all over the world.
She said Van Hoy’s skill at organization kept the festival operating like a well-oiled machine.
"She was so organized. All of it was so precise. We had three different stages going and she knew what was going on at each one," Ireland said.
Ireland said that while Wansie was known worldwide for her work to preserve traditional music, around Union Grove, she was also remembered for her work as a teacher and her involvement with her church, Union Grove United Methodist.
"She taught two of my children," Ireland said. "She was so encouraging in every walk of life."
Ireland said she doesn’t know what the future holds for the Fiddler’s Festival, which normally takes place on Memorial Day weekend.
She said she does know that Wansie’s imprint has been left on the festival and on Union Grove.
"She is going to be missed by so many in Union Grove," Ireland said.
The Van Hoy Family
