WinterFest will fill downtown with Christmas cheer

By Lynn Atkins

Posted: November 25, 2009 at 6 a.m.

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ROGERS — Downtown businesses have always held a holiday open house but they needed more people to attend, said Dorothy Taylor, a member of Main Street Rogers Promotions Committee.

She’s chairing an event that promises to bring many people downtown. The first annual WinterFest, sponsored by Main Street Rogers, will fill the Rogers Historic District with Christmas cheer on Dec. 12.

“It worked out so we could combine several different things,” Sara Mason of Main Street Rogers said. “One of the things we’re good at is grouping lots of small events into a larger event.”

For example, Main Street Rogers has brought Santa to the Park for six years. After arriving with the annual Christmas parade, Santa is available in Centennial Park on weekends to talk to children and pose for photos. This year, he’ll be part of WinterFest as well.

“A lot of people are looking fora place to bring their kids to see some Christmas magic,” Taylor said. She knows families that travel to Kansas City and Silver Dollar City for holiday events. It made sense to offer something local.

Besides visits with Santa and the merchant’s Open House, WinterFest will bring an old-fashioned holiday bazaar to the streets of downtown. Candy Anderson is taking applications from civic and church groups that want to participate. Already half a dozen groups have applied, but she’s answeredquestions from many more and expects to be busy processing applications as the December first deadline approaches.

“We’re really looking for Christmas bazaar merchandise like hand-painted ornaments and crafts,” she said. There will be a cake walk and several groups selling hot chocolate and homemade baked goods.

Taylor, who is handling entertainment on the stage, has alreadyscheduled one church choir and the Benton County School of the Arts doing excerpts from their Christmas musical, “Scrooge.” Dancers from Ballet Westside will perform their Christmas dances and Arkansas Kids will perform, too. There’s still room for a few more performers, she said. A trophy will be awarded for the Best of Show.

A Christmas train and carriage rides will be available for a small fee.

At the corner of Elm and Second streets, the former city attorney’s office will be turned into a shopping opportunity just for children.

The WinterFest Elf House will have gifts for the family with child-friendly prices: from 25 cents to $10, Taylor said. Volunteer elves will help the children shop so they can surprise their parents with the perfect gift.

The Rogers Historic Museum will be open withtours of the Hawkins House decorated for a World War I Christmas. Museum staff will have a craft available for young visitors to make and take home.

Main Street Rogers, the Frisco Lakes Pageant Association and the Rogers Little Theater will sponsor a pageant to crown the WinterFest Queen and WinterFest Princess at 2 p.m. Saturday, Dec.

5, at the Victory Theater in downtown Rogers. In addition to the title, crown, gift packages and a $50 savings bond, WinterFest Queen and Princess preside over WinterFest.

Deadline to enter the pageant is Dec. 3; entry forms and rules are available at www.

rogerslittletheater.org and www.mainstreetrogers.com.

There’s even an opportunity to shop for a live Christmas tree on Walnut Street, just past Fifth Street. The Rogers Optimist Club will hold their annual Christmas tree sale next to the school administration building beginning Nov. 28.

“It’s another family friendly event,” Mason said about WinterFest. She expects it to grow each year just like Main Street’s summer event, the Frisco Festival.

News, Pages 1 on 11/25/2009

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