by Julianna Bonnett
Area residents got to ring in the holiday season early with a hands-on wreath-making workshop at John R. Park Homestead in Essex over the weekend.
More than 35 individuals showed up to the first workshop on Saturday, and another 41 crafters participated in the Sunday workshop.
Kris Ives, Education Coordinator at John R. Homestead, said they are happy to be hosting a wreathmaking workshop because it gets them prepared for December.
“Our Christmas in the Country event is coming up in December and that is one of our biggest events of the year,” Ives said. “With doing wreathmaking, it’s preparing us for our upcoming event, plus it helps the community learn a little more about what John R. Park Homestead is.”
According to Ives, the material they use to create their wreaths for the workshop is what keeps people coming back for more.
“We harvest materials from the forest and farms nearby, and we use that to decorate the homestead,” Ives said. “So, people are always so interested and after doing it last year, we had so many people curious about how we do it.”
“Wreathmaking is something that not only adults can do, but we have kids get involved with it too,” John R. Park Homestead volunteer Rose Thompson added.
Thompson said that while they teach how to make the wreaths, they also like to teach the history of John R. Park Homestead.
“The reason I’ve been a volunteer for 30-years is because of how incredible the history is, it has kept me hooked for 30 years,” Thompson commented.
On December 8, the homestead will host its annual Christmas in the Country event, which draws in many people from the county and the city, as well. It will feature a tour of the homestead and the grounds, which will be decorated with materials gathered from the farm and forest.
For more information on how to get tickets to the Christmas in the Country event, log onto: www.essexregionconservation.ca.