Winterfest returns to the Ferry this weekend

Last week’s bad weather put a temporary damper on the local Christmas celebration when the annual Topsail Christmas parade had to be cancelled. While those storms slowed things down for one December weekend, it hasn’t put an end to Christmas. Anyone who was ready to unleash his or her Christmas spirit last week, and is still looking for a celebration, might consider looking to the northern part of Topsail Island — all the way to Sneads Ferry.

The quaint fishing community is welcoming everyone to visit them for this weekend’s annual Christmas gathering called The Sneads Ferry Winterfest. The weekend-long event will take place at the Sneads Ferry Community Center on December 11 and 12.

If you’d also like to participate in the festival, rather than just visit, there may still be time to enter a Christmas tree into the “Lighting of the Trees” segment of Winterfest. While the trees are a way to express the beauty and spirit of the holiday, they are also a way to help those in need. Officials with Winterfest are encouraging others to follow the idea put forth by several members of Folkstone Freewill Baptist Church last year. They decorated their tree with assorted winter garments like gloves, scarves and hats. While these items made for a beautiful tree, they were later taken off the tree and given to children who live at a nearby children’s home.

The actual lighting of the trees will begin at 7 p.m. on Friday, December 11, but that won’t be the only part of Friday’s itinerary. Following the tree lighting, the family-friendly event will be followed by Christmas music and refreshments. Cookies and wassail will be served while the seasonal tunes are being enjoyed. For those too young to know, or those of us too old to remember, wassail is that warm and spicy cider punch that always seems to manage to find its way into every Christmas party. Even better: it’s free!

If a sugar hangover does not take effect on Saturday morning, the party will resume again bright and early that day. Anyone with children can count on the fact they will not oversleep the chance to have breakfast at 9 a.m. with a special guest from far away. A man by the name of Santa Claus will be making a stop by the Community Center to get fed, say hello to his fans, and listen to some special requests.

Once Santa’s visit concludes and he has headed back to his job at the North Pole with a list from local children, the Sneads Ferry party still won’t be over. An arts and crafts show will be held for the rest of the day, and as morning turns to day, breakfast will turn to lunch. Hotdogs and sodas will be available from noon to 4 p.m.

Even though bad weather kept many of us from celebrating the Christmas season outside last week, it looks like nothing can stop the celebration that will take place inside this week. And while everyone at Winterfest will no doubt be warm, don’t forget to take the opportunity to make sure local children in need can feel that way all year long.

For more information on how to enter a tree into Winterfest, or for any other related questions, call 910 327-1721.