After taking a year off due to the pandemic, Niverville’s annual Winterfest event is a go for this year. Winterfest is a craft sale and market that takes place every year at the Niverville Heritage Centre.
This year’s market will be held on Saturday, December 4 from 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m., with the price of admission being a donation to Niverville Helping Hands in the form of a non-perishable food item or unwrapped toy.
Last year’s Winterfest was cancelled, like so many other gatherings, due to COVID-19. The organizers initially did have some concern that it would have to be cancelled again this year, but provincial health orders will allow it to go forward safely.
In accordance with the current orders, all participants and attendees of Winterfest must be fully vaccinated and present their vaccination card/QR code—along with a valid photo ID—before being admitted.
Masks will also be mandatory for all in attendance.
In the past, the event has been organized by the Niverville Chamber of Commerce, but this year that structure has changed somewhat. Winterfest is now being run by the Niverville Heritage Centre, with sponsorship by the Chamber of Commerce.
Chelsea Gauthier, the Heritage Centre’s events manager, says that she has been thrilled with the amount of interest in Winterfest. She has a background in event-staging but has only worked at the facility for six months. She’s been excited to take on this huge undertaking, both as an opportunity to utilize her expertise and also to better get to know members of the Niverville community.
Gauthier has received more than 125 inquiries about vendor booths so far and says that Winterfest 2021 will have approximately 80 vendors.
The event will continue to follow the successful formula that it has used in the past, but Gauthier says there may be some small changes to the overall look.
“The layout might be tweaked because of COVID-19 and maintaining social distancing,” Gauthier says. “But ultimately it will be the same exciting event!”
