FamFaire: kris kringle markt

FAMfaire KrisKringlMarkt

kriskringle market in market square

The Fredericksburg Area Museum (FAM) is pleased to host FAMFaire: KrisKringlMarkt in historic Market Square on Saturday, December 10th from 11 am - 7 pm. This event will be a spectacular outdoor shopping experience in one of the most beautiful parts of our notable town. Modeled after traditional German-style markets that began in Nuremberg, Germany (dating from the 16th century) our holiday market will include vendors selling traditional crafts and foods. It is the perfect environment to invoke the holiday spirit while friends, families and neighbors stroll along tents filled with gifts and treats.

Held in the same location that has been the center of city commerce since the eighteenth century, F A M F a i r e : KrisKringlMarkt will draw hundreds of visitors to downtown Fredericksburg to shop at the artisan booths and listen to the sounds of local musical groups. From its earliest function as a market, civic and government site, to its present use as a cultural center, this treasured landmark continues to serve its community as a site of the convergence of historic and contemporary culture. To draw the community together in this space to promote our area's art, culture, and history, is a return to its colonial beginnings.

This event features over 20 vendors representing the food, arts, and retail industry.

By Caroline Ford

Caroline Ford is the Director of Operations & Annual Giving for FAM

FAMFaire: KrisKringlMarkt Historic Market Square Saturday, December 10th 11 am - 7pm

LetterstoSanta

For three weeks, a wonder occurs! A mysterious mailbox, bearing the image of Santa Claus himself, appears in downtown Fredericksburg. Legend has it that a child who deposits a letter into the mailbox will receive an answer directly from the North Pole. Santa’s mailbox will appear for the holiday magic through December 20th, located at the corner of George Street & Caroline Street, in front of the Fort-To-Go Store.

The Santa Mailbox is overseen by the Fredericksburg Rappahannock Rotary Club. Please remember to include your return address.

Collette Caprara Guest Porch Editorial

Contributing Writers & Artists

Rita Allan Sally Cooney Anderson Dianne Bachman Laurie Black Sonja Cantu Collette Caprara Michelle Costello ElizabethDaly Janet Douberly Jeannie Ellis Jenna Elizabeth Edwards Caroline Ford Frank Fratoe Bill Freehling Jon Gerlach Lou Gramann Cathy Herndon Ralph “Tuffy” Hicks Nancy Kelly David C. Kennedy Ed King Pat Knocks Laura LaBelle Lyndon Lansdowne Ray Mikula Vicky Neely Anne-Tillery Melson Vanessa Moncure Pete Morelewicz Patrick Neustatter Katy Parker Gerri Reid Paula Raudenbush Helen Ross Rob Rudick Mandy Smith Tim Talbott Emily aylor Anne Timpano Rim Vining Tina Will Norma Woodward

Front Porch Fredericksburg is a free circulation magazine published monthly by Olde Towne Publishing Co. Virginia Bigenwald Grogan, Publisher.

The mission of Front Porch Fredericksburg is to connect the diverse citizenry of Fredericksburg with lively features and informative columns of interest to our community’s greatest resource, its people.

Messages from our readers are welcome. All article submissions must be received by e-mail by the 16th & calendar items the 19th of the month preceding publication.

Writers / Artists / Photographers are welcome to request Guidelines and query the Publisher by e-mail.

ON THE PORCH

Front Porch Fredericksburg PO Box 9203 Fredericksburg, VA 22403

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Copyright 2022 Front Porch Fredericksburg Magazine All rights reserved.

fredberry shines

by collette caprara

A friend and I affectionately refer to the Burg as FredBerry, referring to the kinship between our town and the welcoming, generous, and caring spirit of Mayberry of the Andy Griffith television show. At no time does that resemblance come to the fore more than throughout the Christmas season, as we join together for a panoply of holiday celebrations.

I was musing about that in midNovember when, Voila! early evidence that Christmas was on the horizon appeared. Each of the planters at every downtown corner presented a colorful Christmas tree, joyfully decorated with an abundance of ornaments, courtesy of the "elves" of Tree Fredericksburg.

Soon, the jingle of the bells of the Salvation Army ' s Red-K Kettle Ringers could be heard from the Visitors Center and I knew that a spectrum of other examples of charitable outreach reflecting the Burg's hallmark generosity would follow. "FredBerry" would soon be in its fullest manifestation.

The annual lighting of the Christmas Tree at Hurkamp Park would be next. What a classic scene, with music provided by Pete Mealy and Laurie Rose Griffith, as children ring jingle bells and all in attendance earnestly sing a heartfelt "Santa Clause Is Coming to Town," eliciting the arrival of a fire truck bearing the Man himself. Each year, this scenario strikes me as a reprise of the nostalgic scene from "Elf!" in which the power of the belief of the crowd singing in Central Park brings Santa to life.

These are also the weeks when ballet troupes throughout the area prepare for their annual performances of "The Nutcracker." One of the dance academies is located above my co-op art gallery, and it always amazes me how loudly the leaps of diminutive, svelte, and lithe ballerinas land. A visitor at our gallery once mistook the pounding sounds above for cannon fire and asked if some group was preparing for a Civil War reenactment!

Musings about the holiday season would be remise not to include the clumps of family members and friends wandering from store to store with determined looks on their faces and their entry sheets for Fredericksburg's Window Wonderland riddle contest clutched in their hands as they collect clues to the answers. The creativity and ingenuity of the business proprietors is evident in the window displays they create and our townsfolk can vote for their favorite. In fact, one much anticipated event each year is the unveiling of the latest of Whittingham ' s legendary window displays on Caroline Street. One memorable scenario depicted a hidden living quarters under the floor boards where little mouse "borrowers" had repurposed peoples' possessions, including a CD that had been converted into a dining table for the little creatures. Another display presented a scene from Mouse North Pole, where a crew of tiny rodent rascal elves had helped themselves to a bottle of wine that dwarfed them and were splayed across the floor, quite out of commission.

The apex of Fredericksburg's Holiday Celebration is the Christmas Parade, in which, according to our family, half the town marches as the other half watches, and then all switch positions. Yes, it's pretty long and chock-full of marching bands, scout troops, gymnasts, dancers, and community associations. Lawn chairs start to dot the curbside before noon for the 5:30 pm event, some piled with blankets in preparation for the evening's temperature drop. Cheers and applause rise for each group or float that passes by and the loudest often emerges for the guy with the broom who does clean-up duty behind the horses. The pinnacle of the excitement is the palpable thrill of the crowd as the giant sleigh emerges into view in the distance and all wave wildly to greet the jolly old elf, some calling out a testimony that they had been "good!"

I am grateful to be in the company of those wonderful Burg-Folk!

Collette Caprara is a local writer and member of Brush Strokes Gallery.