The Celebration of Shadows Fall Festival was AMAZING!
It seems to be a tradition that we get rain for this event, but that never stops you all from showing up! As event planners and hosts, it can be a bit nerve-racking to see 100% chance of rain in the forecast. “Will anyone show up?” “Will people stay?” “Is this a terrible idea?”…just a sampling of thoughts that may or may not have been going through our heads leading up to Saturday night.
BUT! Time and again you all come out in the rain and make this night so much fun. You bring the energy that lights up the woods. From the bottom of our hearts, thank you for showing up. We hope you enjoy a few photos of the event below, courtesy of Matt Sagen, Cascadia Films.
We started the day in classic fashion, with pumpkin carving workshops to get people into the spirit. Wanna hear something cool? Our instructor and local artist Tracy Beals was highlighted in an article in the Seattle Times- check it out! How Do Your carve a pumpkin? Tips from the experts.
After the workshops, it was time to line the paths with pumpkins and get the art stations set up for the main event. We were so happy to partner with the North Olympic Library System again and welcome Jennifer Lu’Becke back for all-ages spooky stories in the gallery!
The gallery got a slight makeover to celebrate the occasion. We think the glowing neon the Lighten Up exhibition added a nice dramatic flair. What do you think?
Mandy’s glow-in-the-dark scavenger hunt had people of all ages investigating every inch of the woods while the Port Angeles Community Players helped visitors decorate masks in all sorts of different styles. In the meadow, Olympic Nature Experience ran a station where visitors could make their own shadow puppet and then test it in our shadow-box tent. Clallam Resilience Project had people create bracelets while learning about resilience.
Our neighbors at the Community Playhouse hosted our main performers HeHeHouse Productions on their stage for a shadow theater visual journey and story telling.
Meanwhile, our pumpkin contest judges were hard at work selecting the winners of Silliest, Scariest, Most Creative, and Best Overall in the categories of 11& Under, Youth 12-16, Beginner, and Advanced. Congratulations to all of our winners and thank you to all who participated by adding a pumpkin to the contest.
Our heartfelt thanks to our sponsors: Olympic Peninsula Visitor Bureau, Clallam County LTAX Funds, City of Port Angeles, County Aire Natural Grocers, Steve Methner Insurance, 7 Cedars Hotel & Casino, and Sound Community Bank; pumpkin donors Sunny Farms, Walmart, Safeway, and Home Depot: composters Sisterland Farms; and in-kind sponsors Angeles Millwork and Hartnagel Building Supply and KONP radio; to our hardy volunteers; to our “always down no matter the weather” vendors Pacific Pantry; and lastly, to all of the supporting businesses and organizations that donated for the pumpkin winner prizes. This would not happen without you all- thanks for making it possible!
If you enjoyed the Celebration of Shadows Fall Festival then don’t miss the Wintertide Festival of Light on Saturday, December 13th!