In March 2024, Siri received a Business Record 40 Under 40 award and was interviewed by Iowa Public Radio in March of 2024. When asked about Columbus Park and the former event, he took that opportunity to share his desire to create something even bigger — maybe even outside the city.

Seeds were planted, and forces were coming together but he still didn’t know how it would all shake out. Siri started sharing more about his experience as a Rural Regenerator Fellow with Springboard for the Arts. Before this opportunity, he had not yet deeply considered the importance of artistic growth in rural areas. But the experience of being in the room with other rural artists and hearing about how badly they needed opportunities, shifted his perspective. That fellowship ran from 2022 to 2024, and his cohort met twice at East Silent Lake, MN. Each gathering lit a fire in Siri — he left inspired to create something meaningful in a rural space.

Before MONFest and Columbus Park Art Festival, Siri hosted smaller events at places like Reliable Street, Alluvial Brewing, Mainframe, La Baja Cocina, Casa Azteca, Casa Maya, Good Vibes, Club Champs and Patio, and xBk Live throughout rural central Iowa. These events were created to highlight local artists, musicians, and businesses — giving artists the chance to showcase their talents in front of new audiences they might not have otherwise reached.

He knew there was hunger from artists and visitors alike for these creative and dynamic art activations. So, Siri reached out to a friend and local Huxley business owner Kris Gardner to share his rural vision. Siri had been living in Huxley for four years, and Kris had been a constant supporter of his creative work. She had been vital in helping Siri host events and she facilitated four rural mural opportunities where Siri’s art and community work began to be even more known in the region. He knew she was deeply connected to the community, so they started exploring event spaces together.

They considered Main Street Huxley, but it didn’t feel right. Siri even had his eye on a wedding venue in Madrid — it had the vibe he was going for but still felt out of reach. He considered a barn in Cambridge, but he knew he was really looking for a venue that had that middle-of-nowhere energy. A place that felt remote, intentional, and alive. 

 “You can use the space for free.”

Siri was blown away.

While they were upstairs and getting to work on the new partnership, they brainstormed names.

Siri said, “What about the Middle of Nowhere?”

Then it hit him:

NOW. HERE.

It was perfect. “NOW. HERE.” represented how vital it is to nurture artistic growth in rural spaces — especially for artists of color who don’t always feel like they belong in those areas.

Siri knew it would work when he said, “NOW we have a space to gather. We are NOW HERE.”

And this is how MONFEST was born.

Siri started planning for MONfest 2 right away because he saw the magic they created. While juggling other community projects in the second half of 2023 like the Latino Art Festival, the Altar with Al Éxito at the DsM Art Center and mural jobs in Des Moines and Marshalltown, Siri was constantly thinking about how to keep growing.

He knew he needed to expand the team but who and how?? 

Thinking back through his connections, he knew he wanted to see if he could get Kandace Creel Falcón to join the team. Siri had met them through Springboard. They’d written a Fellow highlight about Siri’s work and had developed a strong working partnership meeting monthly for artist consultations. They were vital in helping Siri organize a lot of the behind the scenes elements for an artist business, and were a really great supporter of rural arts building and community work. They were someone Siri identified as someone who could help expand the word and message of the festival. They had already helped work some copy for MONfest 1 - now it was time to bring them on with more focus for expanding the narratives for the festival for year two.

History matters - as does who tells the story. Here’s our story, in our own words.

The universe has a way of delivering what we need at the right time. And John Barber, owner of the Cellar Winery outside of Madrid happened to be listening to that Iowa Public Radio interview where Siri shared his dream. John messaged him immediately and magic ensued. 

“I tell this story a lot, because even to me, it felt surreal” Siri recalls.

Pulling up to this spot, being invited to drink coffee upstairs with this chill stranger — it was unexpected. But we got to talking about life, music (he’s from Michigan and loves soul and blues), and he gave me a tour of the venue.

Then, he said the magic words:

Planning was well underway and that first year, Siri curated the music lineup and selected Emmett as the emcee. Next up, DJ Astro, someone Siri had worked with at several events, joined the lineup. Siri reached out to businesses who he’d partnered with on other events seeking sponsorships, so that organizers could keep vendor fees low — just $10 — and make the event truly accessible for rural artists to have space to share their work.

Come show day, Drew, John, and Kris all showed up and got to work — helping vendors, guiding musicians, and making the vision come to life. MONFest 1 hit the scene July 20, 2023. Entrance to the Festival was free and boasted over 500 attendees. That day brought community together in such a beautiful way, Siri knew the seeds had been planted for this rural arts and culture event.

Growth takes investing in more people power, and Siri again went back to his previous partnerships to see if Nixson Benitez could join the team to take over socials. He was someone Siri had worked with to create videos throughout the year in other capacities. Nixon joined and helped the team develop online content and increased MONfest’s profile on TikTok. Unfortunately, Benitez’s other commitments took him onto other opportunities before the second festival.

But, Siri had also added another friend to the mix. The team kept moving forward. In 2023, following the success of MONfest 1, expansion in the official staff also included Kaleb Stevens.

In his role, Kaleb organized the music line up for MONfest 2 and oversaw day of production. As a friend and co-conspirator of art activations with Siri (they go back to highschool!) Kaleb’s background in event production and community development have supported new heights for MONfest. He’s integral to the planning and success of MONfest.

While the cast of characters and roles continues to evolve as we look forward to MONfest 3, the dream team keeps working to live into our purpose, mission, vision and values.

There is beauty in growth, and if nothing else, MONfest reminds us of the beauty of change as a part of the rhythms of natural season cycles.

Our story is just beginning.