Oxford kicks off the holiday season with annual holiday festival
People of all ages turned out last weekend for Oxford's annual holiday festival. The event included vendors, winter-themed inflatables for kids and live music.
The holidays are right around the corner, and Oxford rang in the season with its annual holiday festival.
The celebration began on Dec. 6 with a holiday story time and music event with Chad Wonsik at the Oxford Chamber of Commerce, followed by family photos and a performance from the Miami a capella group, the Cheezies. The festivities continued at 9 a.m. the next morning, Dec. 7, with a craft market at the Oxford Community Arts Center (OCAC), crafting for kids and even an appearance from Santa Claus himself. At 1 p.m., the Flowing Grace School of Dance took the stage for a special holiday performance.
Different local vendors set up at the OCAC to sell different types of crafts, some festive. Photo by Stella Powers
At 4:30 p.m., the event transitioned to Uptown Parks with a performance from the Oxford Community Band, carriage rides, different activities for children and more. Uptown was decorated with festive lights and inflatables, all in preparation for Light Up Oxford and Santa’s arrival at 5:30 p.m., followed by performances by Natalie Michael & Soul Kin Band.
Heidi Schiller, the executive director of the OCAC, said for the morning and early afternoon event, they offer lots of kid-centered activities such as free crafts, face painting and more. Schiller said that this is something the center has been doing for over twenty years, and this year in particular, they had more than 700 attendees.
Schiller said that the events at the OCAC are through a partnership with the Talawanda band boosters. For Schiller, the highlight of being involved with this event is seeing all of the kids celebrating, especially when they see Santa.
“Just watching them make crafts, and they’re so studious, and they’re very careful,” Schiller said. “...so as much as I love our crafters, hands down the kids, because all of the things that we do for them, it’s all free. Just come in and enjoy it.”
Another highlight for Schiller was the Miami student involvement. Almost 20 student volunteers helped coordinate crafts, the visit from Santa and more during the event.
The outside of the OCAC was decorated with festive lights and decor for the holiday season. Photo by Stella Powers
Lee Baker DeVore was set up at the very front of the craft room, selling elf and fairy houses, jewelry, mushrooms and other whimsical items made of natural materials. She also sells paintings and note cards.
She said she had been doing this event for four or five years, and while the turnout varies from year to year, she said this year's crowd seemed lighter than normal. However, due to her location at the event, she said it allowed for a more steady flow of customers.
“I only use natural materials,” Baker DeVore said. “They’re all hand crafted. It’s just really harkening back to my own childhood. I mean, I don’t do resin houses. I don’t do manufactured stuff. The fact that I gather my own materials and make them by hand matters to me.”
Baker DeVore said she always enjoys when people stop by to visit her table, especially when both children and adults alike realize the doors to her fairy houses open and their eyes light up.
Anne Schauer was at the event representing Anne’s Dreams in Glass, where she does stained glass, fused glass and lamp working. Schauer described the environment of the event at the OCAC as a great atmosphere, and said she loves seeing colleagues, friends and kids at the holiday festival.
“That’s what I like the best about doing shows…just meeting other artists or just talking to customers that come through, making connections,” Schauer said.
Katie Schaeffer, a Miami senior studying international studies, engineering and physics, saw the event pop up on the Miami event calendar and wanted a way to destress before finals. She attended the Uptown portion of the event and said while it was cool to see everything, this part of the event seemed more geared toward younger children.
“I do like the music, but I can see that compared to stuff like the Spring Festival, it’s much more catered to kids,” Schaeffer said. “It’s festive. It’s joyful.”
Different decorations and entertainment filled the streets of Uptown as the community gathered to celebrate the winter holiday season. Photo by Stella Powers
Grace Scott, a kinesiology major at Miami, saw the event on the MAP Instagram page, and agreed with Schaeffer that it was pretty children-oriented, however, she liked the Christmas atmosphere.
For Scott, a highlight was getting to experience the Oxford community outside of just Miami’s campus.
“They bring the community together,” Scott said. “I never see any of the local families because we’re always on campus, so it’s nice to see them getting out and using all the attractions.”
