Charlotte Varcoe
PENOLA and Coonawarra residents got into the festive spirit last week with the annual Christmas Street Party being hailed as a success.
Many flocked to the Penola War Memorial Park with free entertainment available for children and catering for adults.
A jumping castle, music and slushies were also available and proved popular with the children for the evening.
Penola Business and Community Association president Nicole Reschke said the weather was perfect for the event and followed a successful late night shopping evening.
“This season we have had a really good late night shopping event and have had lots of people from other towns who came and visited us to do their Christmas shopping which was wonderful,” Ms Reschke said.
“We also had a significant amount of entries to the annual Stuffed Santa competition which was great as well.
“It has been a fantastic holiday season so far as well with lots of people coming to town and supporting us which is great.”
As for the street party, Ms Reschke said families enjoyed the evening with their kids, who also received a visit from Santa himself.
“This event is fantastic because it is a chance for people to get together before they might travel off to different areas for Christmas and lets parents catch up while the kids enjoy the spirit of Christmas,” she said.
“The kids also enjoy a present from Santa which they absolutely love as well.”
In addition to a visit from the man in red himself, this year’s Stuffed Santa competition winners were also announced.
Hay Bluey youthful creators Jack and Evie took home the big prize after receiving the most public votes.
Located about 10km out of town on Robe Road, the winning entry received 159 votes out of a total of 500.
Second place went to Bonnie Jenkins, also on Robe Road, with her creative display called Hay Time Sleigh which received 150 votes.
“This fun exhibition is a real draw card to the area so we thank everyone for making the effort,” Ms Reschke said.
“The competition raises community spirit within Penola and Coonawarra while also drawing many visitors to the area to witness the exhibits in person.
“These visitors invest in our community stopping off to purchase gifts, drinks and food and the competition is a great way to have fun while supporting the community.”
The competition received 22 entries which were uploaded to the Penola Coonawarra website and voted on by the community.
“This has resulted in almost 8800 visits to the Penola Coonawarra website and is a 1614% increase on visits from 2020 with many visitors then clicking through to other pages to learn more about our region,” Ms Reschke said.
“All up we received about 500 votes across the 22 entries which included displays showing Santa cooking meats, driving caravans, being flung into bushes, juggling fruit, skiing behind a boat and more.
“We really are a creative community and well done to everyone who submitted an entry.”
