Midwest FurFest 2017 was the eighteenth iteration of the Midwest FurFest convention. It took place over November 30 – December 3, 2017,[1] at the Hyatt Regency O’Hare in Rosemont, Illinois, USA. The theme was “Grimm’s Fairy Tales“.
The Guests of Honor were:
Latin Vixen
VivziePop
RemyWolf
The convention saw 8,771 attendees and was able to raise $85,000 for their charity, C.R.I.S.P.
My bonus that year I picked it up for $5 during the line for the closing ceremony.
This is the year MFF became the #1 fur con in the US
The reason I posted the layout of dealers, is that everyone one of those blue rectangles is a Dealer and there is about 218 of them. To list just 1 would be a total shame, I often find checking out the smaller dealers are the most interesting and I will be doing the same this year. Except there are 2 I will be keeping my eye on, as these 2 actually depend on this year’s MFF to survive.
One of which is Goal Publications, who is on the verge of going under. It’s either sell a lot or there will be 1 less furry publisher and a victory of sorts for Amazon. You are aware Amazon is the largest seller of furry material.
Mission Companion Paw is more than a rescue organization for pitbulls and other misunderstood dogs: it describes itself as going beyond rescue and adoption to “use the international language of art to imprint compassion for animals into urban youth culture.”
Based in Chicago, MCP has rescued hundreds of dogs since 2016 and helps beyond the adoption process, supplying pet food donations to food pantries, and directing families to low cost spay and neuter services. 70% of MCP rescues are considered hard to adopt dogs such as pit bulls, seniors, special needs animals, and extreme medical cases.
According to MCP, “Every dog deserves to have their existence acknowledged, their personality shine and their heart breathe. MCP teamwork brings life, light and love to the ones that everyone may not be able to hear or understand.”
MFF attendees will get to meet MCP’s volunteers and even some potential adoptees at our Dealers’ Den and bid for donated items to benefit MCP during silent and live auctions over MFF weekend.
Stay tuned to see how to donate through MFF, and please visit mcprescue.org.
I will agree with their mission statement pitbulls are a misunderstood breed.
In my life there were 3 pits that were special to me. First up was Bruno, a pet of my boss and would always climb in my lap. Next up was 8Ball a bit of a temper but a good dog and lastly.
Snowy
They all were good dogs, and I dearly miss them as all of them have passed on. This is why pits are very special to me.
Finally, new this year, all reservations will be booked through Midwest FurFest’s room booking service, provided by Cvent. This service will allow attendees to manage their own reservations through a centralized portal, allowing them to manage roommates, special requests, and more. MFF is splitting the cost of this service with all attendees and a non-refundable fee of $4 will be charged for each night booked.
Feeling like you’ve learned enough? The lottery will be open from September 27th through October 4th and click below to enter.
It seems after an unofficial opening of Pre-Registration on Sept 16, where complaints about being overcharged were everywhere. Meanwhile those impatient like me found this on Twitter
Finally yesterday Sept 17th MFF Pre-Registration finally opened Officially and can be found HERE
So what should you know, it’s more expensive than last year, and that there will be a mask rule at the con PLUS you will need proof of being vaccinated.
STANDARD MEMBERSHIP
$60 – early bird pre-registration through September 30, 2021 $65 – normal pre-reg October 1, 2021 through November 22, 2021 $70 – at the door
This includes admission to Midwest FurFest and a copy of our Program Book and Pocket Program.
SPONSORSHIP
$165
A Sponsorship shows that you think the con is kind of awesome and you’d like to help us make it happen. As a Sponsor, you will receive all of the benefits of a membership, as well as the following gifts:
Priority seating for some of our most popular events
Early badge pickup Thursday afternoon for preregistered sponsors
Sponsor Brunch
Sponsor Badge Ribbon
T-shirt
Sponsor Pin
And MORE!
SHINY SPONSORSHIP
$330
A Shiny Sponsorship is for those who not only really, really like the convention, but wish to provide that something extra to help us continue to bring you the best convention that we possibly can! As a Shiny Sponsor, you will receive all of the benefits of a membership, as well as the following gifts:
Priority seating for some of our most popular events
Early badge pickup Thursday afternoon for preregistered sponsors
Sponsor Brunch
Guest of Honor reception
Shiny Badge Ribbon
T-shirt
Sponsor Pin
Polo
And MORE!
What the And MORE! will be once I know I’ll give you an update.
As for Yours Truly
I will be there and as a volunteer, not during the whole con of course. Only during times when there isn’t much for me to do…which will be interesting.
What happened was this sometime last night MFF quietly opened Registration. Almost immediately when people started buying their badges. They noticed problems such as
There was also another post where someone was being billed $1000 for 5 badges.
Lets hope when it officially opens we don’t have these issues.
Here we are waiting for Pre Registration to open up for MFF which has been Sept 1st. When all of sudden all Notifications have been deleted. It would not be unexpected that if the date gets moved closer to the con. Although there are rumors of a possible limit on Attendance, MFF would not be the 1st to do so, nor the last due to COVID concerns. Please keep in mind do to the pandemic issues like this will happen.
MFF posted their COVID Policy and here are some highlights that you should know.
Q: What if I am unable to get vaccinated before November 19th, 2021?
A: If you are unable or unwilling to get vaccinated and provide proof of vaccination, we encourage you to consider attending Midwest FurFest 2022 as we will be unable to admit you this year.
Q: What vaccination proof will be required?
A: Your original vaccination card, a physical paper copy of your vaccination record, or a photographic copy of that record will be sufficient. Digital proof, such as state-level vaccine registries or “vaccine passport” products are also acceptable (as long as they include your legal name and date(s) of vaccination).
Q: What if somebody fakes their proof of vaccination?
A: Any FurFest attendee reasonably believed to have forged vaccine status credentials will be ejected from FurFest and referred to law enforcement. FurFest will press charges if invited to do so. To report suspicious activity involving fake vaccination record cards, please contact the appropriate government agency in your state or jurisdiction, HHS-OIG (1-800-HHS-TIPS or www.oig.hhs.gov), or the Internet Crime Complaint Center (www.ic3.gov).
That’s means Police folks and jail plus fines and they will force you to get a jab like it or not.
Even though there are other Qs on masks this is the most important one
Q: What happens if someone refuses to wear a mask?
A: Refusal to comply with the masking requirement within event spaces will result in automatic revocation of FurFest membership for 2021. Failure to comply with the masking requirement outside of event spaces is left to businesses as well as local and state law enforcement.
Furry Times 