Woodstock Spirit Lives On In Doctor’s Gift

More than half a century after Dr. Harvey Manes joined hundreds of thousands of young people for three rain-soaked days of music, mud and peace at Woodstock in August of 1969, the experience continues to shape his life and philanthropy.

Manes donated $250,000 to support the Manes Conservatory at Bethel Woods, located at the site of the legendary festival in Bethel, New York. The conservatory offers music and arts education for children and teenagers, and Manes recently returned for its ribbon cutting and to see the programs underway.

For the Westhampton resident, an orthopedic surgeon, attorney, renowned art collector and longtime philanthropist, the gift, made through his Manes American Peace Prize Foundation, brought him back to an experience he never forgot.

“Woodstock promoted peace and love, and I always remembered that, kept that in my heart, kept that in my brain,” Manes said. “Peace on earth. Goodwill and peace.”

Manes was a first-year medical student at Washington University in St. Louis when he traveled to the festival with several friends. Traffic forced them to abandon their car and walk to the grounds, where the massive crowd eventually turned Woodstock into a free concert.

There was rain, mud and little sleep, but there was also a lineup Manes still marvels at: Janis Joplin, Jimi Hendrix, The Who, Richie Havens and others who went on to make music history and define an era.

Joplin was his favorite. Manes managed to work his way to about the sixth row for her performance and still recalls exchanging words with her after shouting toward the stage.

He also stayed through Jimi Hendrix’s historic closing performance of “The Star-Spangled Banner.”

But what remained with Manes most was the peacefulness of an event attended by an estimated 400,000 people despite predictions of disorder.

“We thought we were a minority,” Manes recalled of his generation and its anti-war outlook, “but it turns out we were a majority.”

Decades later, his donation is helping carry a piece of that Woodstock spirit forward—this time through young people discovering music and art of their own.