Special to the Star-Herald
Winterfest 2008 began on Friday night, March 14, with a Rotary supper of spaghetti, salad, rolls, brownies and ice cream. It was a delicious meal. This was followed by a variety/gospel show featuring some fantastic talent. Among the performers were: Fireman Fred, who was also the MC for the evening; Aryn Bernier; Chloe Shaw; the Kinney Trio; Bob Collins; Abby Shaw; Kathy Collins; Julie Shaw; Steve Miller; Gage Willette; and Annie Charles. Saturday morning, March 15, began bright and early with the Mars Hill and Blaine Community Club’s St. Patrick’s Day breakfast. There were over 300 meals served to a hungry crowd. The Easter basket that was raffled was won by Shallie Estabrook.
Following this were a couple of peewee basketball games in the gym featuring the kindergarten – third grade kids from the local recreation program. They are fun games to watch as we see our future stars in action!
A cribbage tournament also took place with 36 players in the hunt for the top spot. First place went to Christine Ricker for the second year in a row. She scored 725 out of a possible 726!! Second place went to Gene Amnott (713) and third to Gerald Lawrence (711). Better luck next year – Steve Cheney!
At 10 a.m., the Mars Hill Recreation Department held an Easter egg hunt for the kids, with over 2,000 eggs scattered around the north parking lot. I don’t think that anyone left without a bag full of eggs!
The morning also saw face painting and fun with the Shriners Klowns happening for the kids while the PTCO set up the Spring Fling in the gym. There were a lot of stations for the kids’ entertainment – with the jail, jumping tent and cake walk among some of the popular spots. I’m not sure what the Klowns and the Easter Bunny did wrong – but they all seemed to end up behind bars a number of times!
The United Methodist Women held a bake sale and the Community Cupboard sold popcorn during the morning. The Mars Hill FFA held a baked potato bar, with Big E-style taters available as well as hotdogs and French fries. Outside, there were rides available on a horse-drawn wagon (with King and Sadie in the lead and Chad Putnam in the driver’s seat) as well as on a snowmobile caboose ride around the soccer field with Maurice McCrum.
At 12:30 p.m., the BINGO tables were the popular spot to be, with games running until 3 p.m. I heard BINGO called a number of times – but I was always one number short!
At 2 p.m., there was an obstacle course set up for the kids at Big Rock. Winners in the age 8 and under category were Luke Kearney – first and Isabelle Higgins – second. Age 9 – 11 winners were Samantha Kearney – first and Devin Faulkner – second. Age 12 – 16 winners were Nate McLaughlin – first and Josh Cook – second. Snowboarder winner was Africa.
At 5 p.m., the popular Kardboard Klassic took place with lots of entries. The kids’ division was divided into two runs, with the top three in each heat coming down again. The winners were Ivy Davis and Sarah Maillett – first, Shane Kingsbury – second and Jack James – third. In the JH/SH division, there were also two heats with ‘Git ’R Done’ coming in first with Logan Brewer, Jeremy Tweedie, Kaine Kingsbury, Taylor Bradbury and Jason Lovely inside. Second place went to Jake Pickens, Cole Brown and Kayla Carney on board. Third place went to Lucas Crouse. The adult winner was Shawn Donovan, with Andrew Ellis in second place and Jason and Heather Maillett in third.
The Best in Show winners were: first – Zoe and Jeremiah Brewer in the Blue Car, second – Logan Brewer, Jeremy Tweedie, Kaine Kingsbury, Taylor Bradbury and Jason Lovely in Git ’R Done and third – Dillon MacDougal in the Black Truck. They were a sight to see – especially before the runs down the mountain!
Big Rock had a hot turkey sandwich dinner available at 5 p.m., but better plan on cooking a few more turkey’s next year, as they ran out of turkey before they ran out of hungry people! The crowd enjoyed a Big Air contest at 6:30 p.m. with many entrants. The winners were: Youth Ski division – first, Joe Stiles; second, Dustin Prior; and third, Corey Clayton. In the High School Ski division – first, Spencer Stetson; second, Shane Miller; and third, Caleb Jewitt. In the High School Snowboard division – first, Steve Miller; second, Pat Rowe; and third, Abram Brewer.
Saturday night also saw a great Torchlight Parade with flashlights and flares winding their way down the mountain in a beautiful serpentine formation. This was followed by a fantastic fireworks display that could be seen for miles.
The evening ended with an adult dance at Big Rock that featured music by the band Turning Point.
All in all – another great weekend of entertainment for this year’s Winterfest! Hope you all enjoyed it!