Thread's Winter Wonderland Celebration

Thread celebrated their 25th Anniversary with a Winter Wonderland Celebration at the Captain Cook Hotel this last weekend. Despite the near zero temperatures and frigid windchill, they had a spectacular turn out. My oldest daughter, Sycely and I joined over a thousand other folks for lots of free family fun: food, cake, Native storytelling, music and dancing with Fiddle Dee Dee, face painting, crafts and family portraits.

Thread was also holding a coloring contest at the event. They asked children to illustrate their Anniversary theme, "Growing through Generations." Sycely settled in to work on her picture (her and I planted flowers in the garden together) while I visited with some of the families at our table. One of the families sharing our table had a very special guest with them. Their little girl was hosting her cousin's Flat Stanley, all the way from Pennsylvania. They were excited to be taking some photos of Stanley enjoying some Alaskan family fun. I was, of course, quick to oblige when they asked if I would pose for a photo with Stanley for their cousin's class project.
The big highlight for Sycely was the free carriage rides provided by Alaska Horse Drawn Carriage Company. Despite the below zero windchill and 30 minute wait in said weather, she was determined to get her turn in the carriage. She was completely crestfallen if I even mentioned the opportunity to wait inside a few minutes to warm up, or do the carriage ride another time when it was warmer and we could enjoy a longer ride, so we stuck it out and got our three minutes of fun, squeeze under blankets with 9 other passengers, hoping our combined body heat would improve matters. In spite of the miserable cold and wind, Sycely's smile as we had our (3 minute) ride warmed my heart enough to make me forget how cold the wait was.