Winter wonderland kicks off holidays

By JALEN WADE

Hundreds of College Park residents and visitors welcomed the holiday season on Saturday as the city hosted its annual Winter Wonderland festival and lit a Christmas tree on the plaza at city hall.

The three-year-old tradition featured events to ignite holiday cheer among participants, including an ice sculpting demonstration, free hot chocolate and cookies, and booths for shopping from Maryland small businesses.

“It’s a wonderful event to celebrate community, the holiday season and kind of just bring everyone together,” Ryna Quiñones, the city’s communications and events manager, said.

Santa Claus made an appearance, charioted to the party aboard a fire engine courtesy of the Branchville Volunteer Fire Department.

“We have a great holiday market with lots of vendors … all kind of representing different Maryland vendors, which is amazing,” Quiñones said.

As families bundled in coats and scarves sat on the plaza to listen as the rock group Surf Jaguars rocked out to Christmas jingles and, in a sense of irony, beach music, the festivities spilled over into Knox Road, where the vendors sold holiday gifts, food, craft beers, jewelry, art and candles.

One of the vendors, Magnolia Baez of Magnolia Candles and Soap, said the event brings shop owners and artisans closer to their customers.

“I think it’s mostly because you want to provide the public with the option of handmade products,” Baez said. “And we are all here for this event, and we feel that this is something that we like to do, just be one on one with the community and the customers that we have gathered throughout the years.”

Eleven-year-old Maya Christie and her 8-year-old sister Nevaeh said they were most excited about meeting Santa.

One of the more popular attractions with children was the petting zoo, which rested on the Knox Road vendor alley and had animals from Mary’s Go Round Petting Zoo. The zoo had four pens containing a miniature zebu cow, an alpaca, two sheep, two goats, and a donkey, rabbits and chickens. 

“I think they [children] actually have a great time making friends,” Dean Watson, an employee with Mary’s Go Round, said. “Last year, there were a lot of kids that ended up bonding over this. So Mary’s Go Round loves doing this event.”

Children flocked to the various animal pens. They reached their hands into the cages to pet and feed the animals, which were dressed in festive sweaters. 

The animals also attracted onlookers who weren’t visiting the festival. 

Michelle Marmo, from Virginia, was leaving Ledo’s Pizza, which is across the street from city hall, with her two children Matthew, 7, and Allison, 2. The kids spotted the animals but were afraid to touch them, because one of them was wearing an elf sweater and they are not allowed to touch the Elf on the Shelf their mom keeps at home.

“Pretty exciting,” Marmo said of the festivities. 

The winter wonderland theme extended to the indoors at city hall.

In the main lobby was a table of gingerbread houses, created by the finalists of a month-long competition that ended on Saturday.

In the building’s community room, a dozen or so children watched a puppet show depicting a story about Rufus, a red-nosed rain dog. Michael Cotter, a puppeteer with Blue Sky Puppet Theater, of University Park, said the festival is essential for the community. 

“It’s really all about getting the family out and being part of College Park and just creating community,” Cotter said. “You know … the job of this organization, and my job, too, is to create community.”

College Park Mayor Fazlul Kabir said the holidays are about family and community, and so is the festival. 

“This is the time of the year when the people come together as a family, as a community, and they appreciate what we have and have a relaxed time and celebrate the community so that is the significance of this event,” Kabir said. “And also the appreciation of the businesses, local businesses, and local arts and the culture is another part of it.”