There will be more than 20 arts and crafts booths, face painting, live entertainment, music, fantasy characters, and lots of fun activities. All for just $3 per person -- more smiles per dollar than Disneyland! If you'd like to volunteer, please contact us at [email protected]. Founded in 1971 by Pat Cobler and Ilse Barnhart, the Children's Festival continued as an annual summer event for
19 years. It was revived in 2003, after a lapse of 13 years, as a memorial tribute to Ilse Barnhart and to give children of all ages a chance to enjoy a time of low-tech fun, where imagination, not automation, rules the day. It was paused in 2020 and 2021 due to the Covid-19 pandemic but resumed in 2022. For several months, volunteers meet at weekly workshops to prepare the various arts and crafts and make decorations for the one-day celebration. At the festival, children will be able to make their own costumes, swords, shields and magic wands, and engage in wood block construction, soapstone carving and clay modeling. A medieval cardboard castle will be available for all to paint. Almost 2800 children and adults attended the festival in a single year, an event that provides families with an opportunity to come together and return to a simpler time. Children with fond memories of the original festivals are now bringing their own children to delight in the magic of this unique celebration of creativity and community spirit. The 2022 Children's Festival once again had two sessions, from 9am - 12 pm and from 5pm - 8pm. Admission to each session was $3. Food and beverages were available for purchase. The following "FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS" section is from 2022:
What arts and crafts will be available this year? We will have around 20 stations featuring a wide variety of Renaissance-themed art projects, including tunics, magic wands, crowns, swords, bird masks, puppets, soapstone carving, wood block construction, and other favorites from past years. Will there be a castle this year? Of course there will be a castle! This year we will be constructing a sturdy plywood castle that can be re-used year after year, avoiding the need to take cardboard waste to the landfill. Kids will still be able to paint it inside and out, just like in prior years. What other activities will be available? We will once again have Pyrat Skool, catapults, and Claude, the fire-breathing dragon. We will have a fortune teller, wizard’s games, and face painting (which will be changed to arm painting to avoid close face-to-face contact). What about live entertainment? We’ll have a great line-up of entertainment. Izzy Tooinsky, everyone’s favorite juggler, will be there. We’ve also lined up the Diamond Rose Fencers to put on a fencing demonstration, as well as bagpipers, dancers, and musicians. We’ll also have costumed characters roaming the Festival grounds and participating in the parade at the end of each session. Will refreshments be available at the Festival? Yes, we sell hot dogs, popcorn, lemonade, and other light snacks as in prior years. One big difference this year is that we will no longer sell single-use plastic water bottles. The Children’s Festival has purchased and donated a hydration station for Pioneer Park, which will enable people to refill their own water bottles and reduce the amount of plastic waste. What if I forget my water bottle? The hydration station has a drinking fountain, and you can get free cups of water at the Refreshment area. We will also have reusable souvenir water bottles for sale at just $3 each. Can we bring our own food? Yes, you’re welcome to bring your own food and beverages. There will be picnic tables set up near the Refreshment stand that you can use. You can also set up your own picnic in Pioneer Park outside the Festival grounds before or after you come to the Festival. I noticed that the troll bridge at Pioneer Park has been removed. Will it be replaced in time for the Children’s Festival? Pioneer Park sustained a lot of damage during the snowstorms last winter, and the City is working hard to make repairs, including the construction of a new bridge. If the troll bridge is not completed before the Festival, we have come up with an alternate layout for our activities, and we’ve found a new home for the troll. Don’t worry, we won’t let a little thing like a troll bridge stop the Children’s Festival! Any tips for the adults attending the Festival with kids? Help the Kids Navigate. If the troll bridge is not completed in time for the Festival, we will have volunteers to help us keep the traffic flowing in the right direction. We’ll have plenty of signs, maps, and trail markings, but we recognize that excited kiddos will need some help navigating the new layout. Keep the Kids Safe. Please keep the kids from entering the creek or going past the caution tape near the Refreshments area. (In years past, we’ve had kids accidentally kick down dirt and debris into the Refreshment area.) Remember your Artwork! Please remember to pick up your crafts before you leave. Many of the crafts need to dry, but we often wind up with works of art that get left behind at the end of the Festival. It helps if you bring a tote bag to carry your precious creations. We will have reusable bags for sale for $2 in case you forget. Where can we park? The parking lots at Pioneer Park fill up early, but you can park on surface streets in the surrounding neighborhoods. Please carpool if possible and take care not to block anyone’s driveway. How can I help? It takes an army of volunteers to put on the Children’s Festival. We need people to help out at the craft tables and other activities. If you can spare three hours of your time, we would love to hear from you! I promise you’ll have fun! Please contact our volunteer coordinators at [email protected]. Does the Children’s Festival accept donations? Yes, donations are gratefully accepted. The Children’s Festival is a 501(c)(3) organization sponsored by Gold Country Kiwanis. Please contact our director, Judi Mosley, at [email protected] for more information.
