HOPE – This weekend, two events will kick off the holiday season in Hope.
The third annual Weihnachten will be held Friday from 5 to 8 p.m., as well as from noon to 8 p.m. on Saturday in and around the Hope Town Square.
On Saturday, the German festival will be held simultaneously with A Hope-Filled Christmas, sponsored by Main Street of Hope.
Literally translated into English as “consecrated night,” Weihnachten has become a German word synonymous with Christmas.
Sponsored by the Community Center of Hope, several Bartholomew County residents refer to the event as the German Christmas Market, largely due to its emphasis on local artists and crafters offering unique creations for holiday gifts.
Over the past three years, organizers have worked to match Midwest palates with authentic German food for Weihnachten. Brats, hot dogs and pretzels will be available, according to community center board president Jeff Yarnell. In addition, there will be homemade apple fritters, doughnuts and hot chocolate, he said.
Those who have attended German Christmas markets in larger communities may have enjoyed a hot-spiced red wine called Gluhwein.
In Hope, a non-alcoholic version called kinderpunsch will be served, Yarnell said. According to the “Food, Folks and Fun” website, kinderpunsch consists of fruit juices, apple cider and warm winter spices.
All food purchases will benefit the town’s community center, which operates several programs for low-income residents including a food pantry.
Weihnacten has increasingly become an important event for the center, Yarnell said.
“Without these fundraising events that the community center does throughout the year, we would have a hard time providing everything that we provide,” Yarnell said. “It takes a lot of money, so these events are vital to the survival of the center.”
Although Weihnachten is the only event on Friday, the German Festival will share the spotlight from 5:30 to 8 p.m. Saturday with “A Hope-Filled Christmas.”
When the two events are held together Saturday evening, activities will include games, crafts, carriage rides, hay rides, blow-up displays and a tree decorating contest.
A third nonprofit, FRHC Replay, will be offering photographs with Santa Claus from 5 to 8 p.m. Saturday in exchange for a freewill donation. The organization strives to provide opportunities for extracurricular activities to children in need.
The northeast Bartholomew County community will only have less than a week before the next big holiday event comes to the town square. “Christmas of Yesteryear,” sponsored by the Yellow Trail Museum, will be held from 5 to 8 p.m. on Friday, Dec. 6.
