Weedsport is looking to ring in the holidays with a fun run and a fun day. The 11th Old Tyme Christmas will overrun the village with Christmas cheer Saturday.
Sam Tenney / The Citizen
Weedsport's annual Old Tyme Christmas encourages participants to keep healthy during the holiday season with exercise.
Weedsport's annual Old Tyme Christmas encourages participants to keep healthy during the holiday season with exercise.
The day-long event starts with 5 kilometer run/walk at 10 a.m., directly followed by a parade down Seneca Street.
The first event is for all the people trying to stay in shape through the holidays. Participants can enter the race by registering on Seneca Street between 9 and 9:45 a.m. Saturday. The registration fee is $20.
Then come the festivities, which include craft vendors, carolers, wagon rides, live music, snow bowling and more, which lasts through 3 p.m.
The Cayuga County Sheriff's office will be taking free photos and fingerprints of children for interested families at the New York Pizzeria as part of the statewide Operation Safe Child program. Families will also be able have their pictures taken with Santa Claus. And for the families with four-legged members, Santa will pose with pets from 1 to 2 p.m.
“We have so much going on all day,” said Penny Hawker, president of the Weedsport chamber of commerce. “That's the idea, to kick off the season with a lot of family fun.”
The annual event started as a way to attract people to Weedsport and let area residents know what the village has to offer, Hawker said. However, it is also a charity event. All of the proceeds from this year's festival will go to the local food pantry, which also serves Cato, Port Byron, Conquest and Sennett.
More than 90 vendors from all over central New York will sell crafts and antiques throughout the festival, and raffle prizes will be given out all day.
Local businesses will also participate, as many are going to host musicians and events of their own Saturday. At Burritt's Cafe on Seneca Street, the band Second Wind will perform from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m., and Bob Nodzo will play guitar favorites from 1 to 3 p.m.
Darryl Wolford, co-owner of Burritt's Cafe, said that the Old Tyme Christmas is a great way to expose local people to new musicians. Along with the entertainers at Burritt's, Wolford has also booked numerous acts that will play at other businesses throughout the day.
The festival is also good for business, he said.
“It is a very positive thing for us,” he said. “It exposes us to a lot of people who haven't come in to the cafe before.”
The Old Tyme Christmas has grown since its inception, said Kathleen Spingler, who organized the first one 11 years ago. There are more vendors and more people participating, but the spirit behind the event hasn't changed. It is still about helping a local charity, promoting local businesses and making people smile, she said.
“It really brings a lot of community people together,” Spingler said. “People who have not seen their neighbors for years are suddenly standing in line together at a gift shop.”
Spingler added that her favorite parts of the Old Tyme Christmas are the sounds from all the festivities.
“I like the horse and wagon rides, hearing the horses go clop-clop-clop and the bells jingling,” Spingler said. “And I like the sound of the kids caroling.”
Staff writer Christopher Caskey can be reached at 253-5311 ext. 282 or christopher.caskey@lee.net
If you go
What: Weedsport Old Tyme Christmas
When: Begins at 10 a.m. Saturday
Where: North Seneca Street, Weedsport
Cost: Free; 5K race registration is $20
For details: Call 834-2280
The first event is for all the people trying to stay in shape through the holidays. Participants can enter the race by registering on Seneca Street between 9 and 9:45 a.m. Saturday. The registration fee is $20.
Then come the festivities, which include craft vendors, carolers, wagon rides, live music, snow bowling and more, which lasts through 3 p.m.
The Cayuga County Sheriff's office will be taking free photos and fingerprints of children for interested families at the New York Pizzeria as part of the statewide Operation Safe Child program. Families will also be able have their pictures taken with Santa Claus. And for the families with four-legged members, Santa will pose with pets from 1 to 2 p.m.
“We have so much going on all day,” said Penny Hawker, president of the Weedsport chamber of commerce. “That's the idea, to kick off the season with a lot of family fun.”
The annual event started as a way to attract people to Weedsport and let area residents know what the village has to offer, Hawker said. However, it is also a charity event. All of the proceeds from this year's festival will go to the local food pantry, which also serves Cato, Port Byron, Conquest and Sennett.
More than 90 vendors from all over central New York will sell crafts and antiques throughout the festival, and raffle prizes will be given out all day.
Local businesses will also participate, as many are going to host musicians and events of their own Saturday. At Burritt's Cafe on Seneca Street, the band Second Wind will perform from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m., and Bob Nodzo will play guitar favorites from 1 to 3 p.m.
Darryl Wolford, co-owner of Burritt's Cafe, said that the Old Tyme Christmas is a great way to expose local people to new musicians. Along with the entertainers at Burritt's, Wolford has also booked numerous acts that will play at other businesses throughout the day.
The festival is also good for business, he said.
“It is a very positive thing for us,” he said. “It exposes us to a lot of people who haven't come in to the cafe before.”
The Old Tyme Christmas has grown since its inception, said Kathleen Spingler, who organized the first one 11 years ago. There are more vendors and more people participating, but the spirit behind the event hasn't changed. It is still about helping a local charity, promoting local businesses and making people smile, she said.
“It really brings a lot of community people together,” Spingler said. “People who have not seen their neighbors for years are suddenly standing in line together at a gift shop.”
Spingler added that her favorite parts of the Old Tyme Christmas are the sounds from all the festivities.
“I like the horse and wagon rides, hearing the horses go clop-clop-clop and the bells jingling,” Spingler said. “And I like the sound of the kids caroling.”
Staff writer Christopher Caskey can be reached at 253-5311 ext. 282 or christopher.caskey@lee.net
If you go
What: Weedsport Old Tyme Christmas
When: Begins at 10 a.m. Saturday
Where: North Seneca Street, Weedsport
Cost: Free; 5K race registration is $20
For details: Call 834-2280
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