VOCA's 15th Annual Festival of Trees

The 15th Annual Festival of Trees will be held at the St. Peter's Lions Hall on Saturday November 21 from 9am to 9pm and on November 22nd from noon until 2pm. The Village On The Canal Association (VOCA) presents two fun filled days with a variety of activities planned. The festivities will begin at 9am on Saturday with a homemade pancake breakfast with Santa and Mrs Claus. There will be a picture session from 9am to 10:30am for the children with Santa at a cost of $5.00. The Lakeside Senior's Club will have lunch items on sale on site throughout the day. From 12pm from 4pm, children are welcome to stop by Santa's Corner and write a letter to Santa, make crafts, and participate in a colouring contest.

This year there will be an added feature as the festival welcomes the Maritme Marionettes Puppet Theatre. The theatre group have been invited to perform “The Bremen Town Musicians”, which will take place from 10:30am until 11:30am. This is a delightful folktale of an aging donkey who follows his dream to become a musician. The children will follow his journey on the road to Bremen town. Along the way the donkey befriends a dog, a cat and a rooster who, like the donkey, are no longer needed as farm animals. The children will enjoy the antics as the group form a comical quartet and forge a bond that will last forever.

Of course, being that it is the Festival of Trees, the public is invited to enter and decorate their own personalized Christmas tree, which visitors will have the opportunity to vote for in a series of five catagories: Commercial/Retail, Youth Group, Organization, Child/Children, and Shining Star (for all other entries). The winners of last years competition were for Chidren's catagory - Kaitlin & Kendra Burke, for Youth Organization-St. Peter's Playschool, for Business/Retail - FEM Decor and for Organization-Canadian Cancer Society. Entry fee is a non-perishable food item for the food bank and a decoration from the tree or item of choice donated to the silent auction.

Throughout the day there will be activities such as a “new to you” ornament exchange, viewing of and voting for the trees, and participation in the silent auction. The official Tree Lighting Ceremony will take place at 6pm. Following the tree lighting, at Santa's Workshop, Mrs. Claus will treat the audience with a reading of the beloved classic, “The Night Before Christmas”.
The evening continues with a concert from 6:30-8:30pm, featuring an excellent variety of music,showcasing local talent from the surrounding area. One on my favorite portions of last years entertainment was the highland dance troop of Jenifer Mombourquette. Their performance was delightful. Jenifer does such a marvelous job with her young students, and I am looking forward to this years event. The evening will end with hot mulled cider and Christmas treats for all to enjoy. Admission to the Festival is a silver collection.

On Sunday November 21st, the viewing and voting for the trees continues and Sunshine Sue will entertain the children with interactive fun and face painting from 12-2pm. The little ones will have the opportunity to have their picture taken with Santa and there will be more excellent entertainment from 1-2pm. At 2pm the voting for trees and the silent auction will be completed and the awarding of presentations and auction prizes will follow.
Last year the festival had thirty eight trees entered, including the annual food bank tree. Over 270 people attended the event, raising approximately $1,250 for the local food bank through a voluntary silver collection.

To enter your Tree for this years festival go to www.visitstpeters.com and click on Festival of Trees or email festivaloftrees@visitstpeters.com.