There were a lot of winners at the seventh annual Splash of Christmas Craft & Trade Show. The yearly event has been a fundraiser for Virden Spray Park, however, with the majority of the spray park work completed and paid for, the group decided to partner with the Virden Dog Park committee.
The Splash of Christmas yielded $2000 for the dog park and the committee says they are now well over half-way to their goal of $25,000 for a fenced dog park.
The Spray Park (Facebook) noted, “We are so excited to be able to partner with another fundraising group in our town and are excited for their success today raising just over $2000 towards the new Dog Park!”
The event attracted vendors and customers from southwest Manitoba and some from southeastern Saskatchewan.
Setting up a table at a sale is demanding as well. Volunteers for the dog park were on hand to help vendors set up their tables. Something vendors said they really appreciated. They also worked at the door and sold 50/50 tickets.
The hall at Tundra Oil & Gas Place was filled with excitement as a crowd swirled around some 50 displays representing hours of preparation, evident in the quilt work by Linda Hume from Reston and other hand-made goods. Visiting often went along with the sales.
Friends and family members worked together, grandchildren and children sometimes got involved, learning the ropes of grassroots entrepreneurship.
Alisha Davidson and her daughter Bentley worked in the busy Patti Cakes booth. Bentley was trying out her new cotton candy maker and earning her way to paying for it.
The great thing about a craft and trade show is the variety of bright ideas, all in one place. From table to table there were socks to fix foot troubles, unique handmade jewelry, gifts for tiny tots, beauty products, indoor/outdoor Christmas décor, hand-crafted lollipops, and of course preserves and baking.
A cart of food from the TOGP canteen was wheeled in for vendors who couldn’t leave their booth to grab a bite of lunch. Another great service.
Sales were brisk, many vendors said.
