Santa Saturdays: Downtown Racine rings in the season

By LEE B. ROBERTS
Journal Times

Wednesday, November 26, 2008 5:31 PM CST

Zip up your parka, slide on those warm, fuzzy mittens and head Downtown. That’s where the action will be in the coming holiday season when the Downtown Racine Corp. presents Santa Saturdays.

These festive Saturdays — the first three in December — are part of Racine’s new Winterfest, a series of special seasonal events that began with the Holiday Parade earlier this month and will continue through most of December.

Featuring a variety of entertainment, activities and promotions that will take place throughout Downtown, Santa Saturdays will be like an earlier, chillier version of Racine’s First Fridays — a popular evening event that takes place Downtown during the warmer weather. Choirs from area schools and churches will sing carols on Monument Square; Mrs. Claus and Santa’s (live!) reindeer will be on hand to pose for holiday photos; children’s crafts and games will be offered; and folks can kick back in the comforts of a horse-drawn carriage while touring the city’s holiday decorations. There will even be a Christmas tree lot, where shoppers can find everything from balsams, white pines and Frazier firs to specialty wreaths and kissing balls designed by Balsam Wreaths Country Scents & Gifts.

Meanwhile, inside Downtown businesses, visitors will not only find special holiday promotions but 26 theme-decorated Christmas trees that will be raffled off to lucky winners on the last Santa Saturday. Each unique tree has been decorated by designers who were “hand picked” from among the best designers of Racine’s long-standing holiday event, the Festival of Trees, according to Jean Garbo, marketing director of the DRC. The Festival of Trees, which took place in Festival Hall in November for nearly 20 years, was replaced this year by Winterfest in an effort to try something new.

Tree designs range from pop culture themes including a Hannah Montana tree (with more than 200 ornaments, a coordinating tree skirt, and special under-tree gifts) and a Webkinz tree (featuring Webkinz critters and trading cards), to more general themes such as the tropics, a winter wedding and an Armed Forces tree, Garbo said.

“We are trying to include some of the more traditional and Victorian designs along with the more contemporary ones,” she said.

Tree View Walking Tour maps will be available and visitors are encouraged to wander the route and take in all of the trees. Raffle tickets, which cost $1 each or 6 for $5, may be purchased at any of the participating merchants, as well as the DRC office,

425 Main St. Winners will be drawn at 3 p.m. on Dec. 20.

And, after you’ve immersed yourself in all of that holiday cheer, you can head on over to the Balsam Wreaths tree lot on Monument Square, where you will find some of the freshest Christmas trees available in this part of the state, according to Christa Lofquist, who co-owns Balsam Wreaths with her husband Jerry. The trees that their company will be offering on Santa Saturdays — all of which will be 7 or 8 feet tall — won’t be cut until the first week in December, Lofquist said. Most other Christmas trees, she added, are cut from the fields in November and some in late October.

In addition to the trees, the Lofquists will be offering a wide range of custom-designed wreaths, including the traditional round variety (12 inches to 6 feet across) as well as those in the shape of candy canes, hearts and support ribbons. They will also have two different styles of kissing balls (a modern day version of mistletoe); door and mailbox swags; centerpieces, garlands and grave sprays — with prices ranging from $10 for a door swag to wreaths that start at $15 and go up $198 (72-inch).

No matter what size it is, each wreath is a thick, lush piece made with fresh greens, said Lofquist, whom Festival of Trees patrons may remember from the Balsam Wreaths booth there. She and her husband, who are both Racine natives, started their wreath business about six years ago and it has been growing ever since, Lofquist said.

They are excited to be a part of Santa Saturdays and are looking forward to seeing some of their customers from the Festival of Trees and other area festivals.

If You Go

WHAT: Winterfest’s Santa Saturdays

WHEN: Noon to 6 p.m. Dec. 6, 13 and 20.

WHERE: Activities will take place on Monument Square and throughout Downtown Racine.

COST: Most activities are free. Carriage rides, provided by The Enchanted Carriage, cost $20 per trip (up to six passengers).

INFO: A complete entertainment schedule is available at http://www.racinedowntown.com/santasaturdays.html

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