March 25 & 26
Master new things. It’s up to you. Take control of your future.
LOCATION: 4631 Highway 70 E, Camden, TN 38320
GATES OPEN AT: 8:00 AM
Join us for presentations, demonstrations, vendor exhibits, community, and music!
The Self-Reliance Festival at Special Operations Equipment gives you a close-up view of both strategic and tactical skills. Thoroughly practical demonstrations include emergency medical training, defense dogs, blacksmithing, aquaponics, and permaculture design.
PANELS & PRESENTATIONS
March Presenters!
(subject to adjustment)
Smart Homesteading
Nicole Sauce
Bring your homestead dream to life with considered use of technological assistance. Lessons learned from 15 years of homesteading.
The 3 Pillars of Radiation Safety
Ed Hubbell
Dealing with radiation
Live Q&A
John Willis
John Willis tells it as he sees it – as he has learned to excel in a sometimes-hostile environment.
Modern Off-Grid Living
TAG
Learn what it takes to live completely free from the grid – without sacrificing size or comfort. Tag from Life Done Free will take you through the advantages and struggles.
Backyard Soil Building
Eric Johnson
Composting overview and methods
Area Intelligence: How to do an Area Study
Mike Shelby
How to do a local threat assessment and Area Study for emergency preparedness and community security planning
Navigating the Fall of Empires
CJ Killmer
Delve into critical moments of empires that have shaped the world. What practical lessons should we learn from ancient civilizations?
Defending Against the 3 Most Likely Attacks
Joel Ryals
How can you use defense animals to meet the three most likely attacks?
All About…
Chuck Peoples
Are you ready to act when an injury or illness strikes? Come, what skills and equipment are needed to be prepared.
Create Home Safety
Dana McLendon
Best ways to secure your home – and how to make protection happen.
CEO and Well Prepared for Anything
Bear Independent
Learn from a successful businessman how to found, build, and effectively run a company devoted to service of God, country, and freedom.
Off-Grid Comms for the Homestead
Evan Dixon
Develop a self-reliant communication plan that will enhance your everyday life in the present and reinforce your resilience for the future.
Distilling for Fuel
Jason Rautbort
Turn simple ingredients into fuel for farm equipment.
Solar on the Cheap
Shawn Mills
Practical planning to establish your off-grid infrastructure
Charcoal/Biochar Production and Use
Bruce DeVries
How to make charcoal and inoculate for Biochar production, and kiln manufacture
HAM Radio for Regional Communications
Brian and Susan Dudley
Practical demonstration to help you establish communications capability for communications beyond your immediate locale. Hands-on with radios, antennae, and procedures continues through the weekend.
Food Preservation Methods
Angela and Garren Allard
A demonstration about food preservation methods from beginner techniques to the advanced.
BECOME A VENDOR
People who come to Self-Reliance Festival are looking for quality products and services.
Seekers: Where to Find Really Good Products and Services?
It’s simple: Visit Vendor Row at Self-Reliance Festival. Sellers have struck out to build their own independent lifestyles and have discovered a knack for helping others on the same lifestyle track!
Sell your wares!
What about you? Become a vendor here.
Vendors!
Have something to sell? Click here.
Booth: $400
12’x12′ space to erect your popup and booth trappings. All spaces will be marked and are located outdoors, with plenty of foot traffic. Booth rental includes:
- 2 tickets to the festival
- your logo on the Self-Reliance Festival website
- Your swag or flyer in the swag bags (optional)
Vendors provide tent, tables, promotion materials, and swag. We will do our best to provide electricity, to the capacity of the facility. You supply extension cord and surge protector.
Table: $100
Space to erect your 6′ table. All spaces will be marked and labeled, with plenty of foot traffic. Table rental includes:
- 1 ticket to the festival
- your logo on the Self-Reliance Festival website
- Your swag or flyer in the swag bags (optional)
Vendors provide table, shade, and promotion materials, and swag. We will do our best to provide electricity, to the capacity of the facility. You supply extension cord and surge protector.
Flea Market
$10, cash only, Self-Reliance Festival ticket holders only
Welcome, festival entrepreneurs!
In the Flea Market you can offer anything – a few jars of jam, second-hand prepper items – whatever you have. We will designate a Flea Market area. No table or equipment provided, no specific seller’s space assigned. Sorry, no electricity available.
BUT: No need to be present for the entire weekend. No advance notice necessary.
Must purchase one ticket to the festival for each seller in attendance and pay flea market attendant $10 in cash.
Swag
We will offer participants a bag of goodies and information, and we need your help! Opportunities to promote your business or side gig include:
- Provide the swag bags (email lani@nysara.com, please)
- Send swag: a flyer, coupon, or sample *
* In order to have materials or items in the swag bags, send 200 copies to arrive by February 15 to: Self-Reliance Festival SWAG, 605 Long Branch Rd., Lancaster, TN 38569
BECOME A SPONSOR
Without backing, Self-Reliance Festival would be a very different event. Become one of the people and businesses who support Self-Reliance weekend!
Please click here, go to Tickets>Sponsor, or email Nicole Sauce, Nicole@LivingFreeinTennessee.com or Mama Sauce, Lani@Nysara.com for more information.
General Sponsor
$3,000
- 4 tickets
- all benefits of the $1,000 level
$1,000
- 2 tickets
- 12’x12′ booth space in vendor area
- all benefits of the $500 level
$500
- 2 tickets
- logo on website
- promotional material in swag bag (you provide)
Back-a-Bog Sponsor
$600
- Embrace the humor! Sponsor a whole port-a-john.
- You’ll get your company name and logo on a poster inside all latrines. After all, everyone has to go.
Bog Ad Sponsor
$100
- Puts your company name and logo, along with other ads, in a latrine.
THANK YOU!
SPONSORS
Holler Roast Coffee
Holler Roast Coffee provides much of the event management for Self-Reliance Festival and runs a couple of giant urns of brew.
Special Operations Equipment
SOE hosts Self-Reliance Festival in and around their factory.
Living Free in Tennessee
The podcast that entertains, educates, and empowers you to live the life you choose.
The Liberty Lab
We design and develop highly professional websites, apps, and online tools for conservative, libertarian, limited government, and free-market organizations and communities.
Bergen County Harley-Davidson
Fiercely Independent!
EMP Shield
Leading the way in EMP & lightning protection
Hack My homestead
Homestead infrastructure design, supply, and installation
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
What is your cancellation policy
Your ticket is nonrefundable.
Where is the festival?
Self-Reliance Festival
at Special Operations Equipment
4631 Highway 70 E
Camden, TN 38320
Lodging
FREE! Camp overnight at Special Operations Equipment. There’s a composting toilet and water.
Lodging closest to SOE property
New Johnsonville
5 minutes away
New Johnsonville Harbor Campground
130 Harbor Cir, New Johnsonville, TN 37134
(615) 319-4433
no website
Deerfield Inn (*closest hotel to SOE property*)
1331 Broadway Ave, New Johnsonville, TN 37134
(931) 535-3889
no website
Camden
under 5 miles / 10 minutes
Best Western Home Place Inn
731-584-2222
Nicest hotel in the area
Country Hearth Inn and Suites
731-584-6666
Birdsong Road area
5 miles / 10 minutes
Cedar Ridge RV Park
3400 Birdsong Rd
Camden, TN 38320
Close to SOE
Birdsong Resort | Marina | Campground
255 Marina Road
Camden Kentucky Lake, Tennessee 38320-9699
(731) 584-7880
Close to SOE
20 minutes plus from SOE
Most affordable
34 miles / 40 minutes from SOE
Pike’s Peak Campground
$10-12
127 Perryville Rd, Parsons, TN 38363
(731) 249-0029
East
15 miles / 20 minutes from SOE
Waverly
Imperial Lodge
504 W Main St #1407, Waverly, TN 37185
(813) 304-5113
no website
South
15 miles / 20 minutes from SOE
Days Inn by Wyndham, Holladay
13845 Hwy 641 N, Holladay, TN 38341
(731) 483-2068
West
27 miles / 35 minutes west of SOE
The Heritage Inn
11790 Lexington St, Huntingdon, TN
North
28+ miles / 36+ minutes north of SOE
farthest, but largest city in the immediate area
Paris Landing RV Park
35 Point Pleasant Road, Buchanan, Tennessee
Larry Richardson: 731.363.3020
Faye Richardson: 731.363.3019
a KOA facility?
Paris, TN
Hotels
Super 8 by Wyndham Paris
1309 E Wood St, Paris, TN 38242
Paris Inn & Suites
1297 E Wood St, Paris, TN 38242
Quality Inn
1510 E Wood St, Paris, TN 38242
Knights Inn Paris
409 Tyson Ave, Paris, TN 38242
Other links
RV, camping, and camping cabin parks in the area
Hotels and motels near Camden, Tennessee
Can I park my RV onsite?
No. Please see “Lodging” FAQ.
Food and supplies
Can I bring my dog?
No.
What about bringing children?
There is no discount for youngsters.
Children who behave as adults are welcome. If children become unruly – or if adults act like unruly children – they will be ejected from the event.
Food and drink
Food and some beverages will be available for purchase. Water is in the orange and white Gatorade urns.
We will serve Holler Roast Coffee – for a freewill donation.
A Note:
Organizers seek food, drink, and snack vendors. What about you: do you make yummy things?
Please sign up to sell food at Self-Reliance Festival by completing the Vendor application. At least one of your tickets will be complimentary, and you’ll make a few bucks.
For questions, email Mama Sauce: lani@nysara.com.
Necessities and luxuries
This is Self-Reliance Festival: when you come, please be equipped to take care of yourself.
The event is held just outside a small rural town. Everything takes place in and around a sewing factory. We can’t entirely take over this production facility, so we fit in among the trappings of doing business and the memorable Willis Collection of Wonderful Items.
Bring your own chair, water bottles, clothing for Tennessee and the season, and all the things you need for comfort. Example: Mama Sauce needs a knitting project in order to listen carefully to a speech.
Some attendees have found cellphone service spotty; others have no problem at all. There is no internet onsite. We will try to set up a device charging station.
Leave valuables at home.
Really, bring your CHAIR. Don’t rely on nabbing 1 of the 20 we own. Your feet will get tired and your back will hurt.
Please leave valuables at home.
Bathrooms and kitchens
Attendee toilet facilities are outdoors in the form of composting outhouses and porta-johns. Please do not ask to and do not use the factory workers’ rest rooms.
The same is true of the kitchen. In order to feed 300 – 600 people, every attendee must stay out of the kitchen, the areas in front of it, and the restrooms – even those visitors accustomed to using these areas. If you want to cook or chill something, bring a stove and cooler.
Parking $5
All participant parking is at Big Daddy convenience store.
Place your parking pass on the dashboard. It’s good Saturday and Sunday.
Please leave valuables at home.
Especially for vendors
Vendor setup hours
- Friday, September 30, 4-7 pm
- Saturday, October 1, 7-8 am
When you arrive during setup hours, check in with Jennifer Bowman, the vendor manager, at the information booth. Please don’t ask to set up outside setup hours. We hate to say it, but the answer is “Sorry, no.”
Bring everything you need:
- shelter
- tables
- chairs
- SOE has a finite number of electrical outlets. Extension cords must be heavy-duty.
- paper towels
- tape
- buckets if you need a water supply
- There is a Walmart about 15 minutes away.
- Count on having no cellphone service or internet.
Vendors may drive to building to offload and onload. If possible, we will park vendors at SOE.