Our Daily Show Interview! Trinity Fest is Set for August 2nd!
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ALTON - The community is invited to the eighth annual Trinity Festival to enjoy 16 bands in 12 hours and raise money for Trinity’s Way.
Doors open at 11:30 a.m. on Saturday, Aug. 2, 2025, in the warehouse at Milton Schoolhouse in Alton, and the event concludes at midnight. With two stages, over ten vendors, and 16 bands on the lineup, members of Trinity’s Way promise a fun day for everyone who comes out.
“I think we’re on track to really have a great festival this year,” said April Gray. “Just to have that community support and that sense of love and the good vibes that day, it’s honestly enough to keep us going all year long and all of the other events that we do.”
This year’s lineup includes Datura, Modern Pasta, Sometimes It’s Foggy and Sometimes It’s Clear, Hideous Gentlemen, Accidentally on Purpose, The Trophy Mules, Krickett & the Grilled Avocados, The Peacelords, Piasa Canyon, Mellow Trauma, Psychedelic Symphony, Justus & the Experience, Skypool, Hallelujah Lily, Kevin Hartman, and Sawyer Konkol.
Tickets to Trinity Festival cost $20 and you can purchase tickets online or pay cash at the door. If you bring at least ten pounds of pet food to donate, you will receive your ticket half off. If you’ve already bought your ticket, you can bring the pet food and organizers will reimburse you $10. Kids under age 10 are admitted for free.
“It’s $20, but you can get $10 off if you bring cans of any kind of pet food — cat, dog, squirrel, chicken, we don’t care,” joked Chris Unthank, president of Trinity’s Way.
Gray and Unthank explained that the organization supports other local nonprofits, like Hope Animal Rescues, the Metro East Humane Society, and the pet food pantry at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church.
They also organize open mic nights at Maeva’s every month, and they always have cleanup days throughout the year. Their next cleanup day is scheduled for 10 a.m. on Aug. 9 at Piasa Park.
Trinity’s Way was founded in honor of Trinity Buel, Gray’s daughter and Unthank’s goddaughter. Trinity, 17, lost her life in a car accident in 2018. The organization aims to carry on her legacy, which includes a deep passion for animal and environmental rights.
“When we’re making decisions about where we’re going to put funds, one of the questions that we always ask as the board is, what would Trinity do in this situation?” Gray shared. “Where is it going to be most useful? What would her thoughts be about this?"
Unthank joked that he wants a “WWTD” bumper sticker. He added that Trinity loved coyotes, which is why the organization sponsors two coyotes at Treehouse Wildlife Center named Zooney and Bootsey. Because Trinity enjoyed concerts and festivals, the Trinity’s Way board always looks forward to organizing Trinity Festival.
In addition to the music, attendees can enjoy face-painting and fairy hair. The event is family- and pet-friendly. Maeva’s will be slinging drinks, including alcoholic beverages.
Holy Land Tattoos will also offer flash tattoos. Gray said that Trinity wanted a tattoo, and she shared a few of Trinity’s favorite designs with the tattoo parlor as they created their flash sheets.
The event aims to bring people together to have fun in memory of Trinity. As Gray and Unthank prepare for this year’s festival, they encourage people to come out and enjoy the experience.
“It’s kind of at the core of what we do because it is our biggest fundraiser of the year,” Gray added. “We started this many years ago, way back in 2018. We had a phenomenal turnout at that first event and we realized that this was the thing that made sense for us to do because of Trinity’s love of music and how she loved going to festivals and going to concerts. I feel like Trinity's Way wouldn't be what it is today if we hadn’t been so successful at having the Trinity Festival all of these years.”
For more information about Trinity Festival, including how to purchase tickets online, visit the official Facebook event page. To learn more about Trinity’s Way, check out their official website at TrinitysWay.org.
