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Cowboy Christmas back and better than ever after year hiatus

The Twelfth Annual Cowboy Christmas Craft Fair and Concert is ready to go.
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Gaeil Farrar photo Entertainers LeRae Haynes (from left), Rossetta Paxton and Wilf Wright perform during the most recent Cowboy Christmas Craft Fair and Concert held in 2016.

Fully settled into its new home, the Museum of the Cariboo-Chilcotin is ready to put on its Twelfth Annual Cowboy Christmas Craft Fair and Concert.

Museum coordinator Joe Borsato said that they have settled pretty well into their new space at the Tourism Discovery Centre over the last year. Despite the wildfire interrupting this process, he said they’ve found the highway location has greatly increased traffic and interest in the museum.

As their volunteers were to tied-up with dealing with the aftermath of last years wildfire, this Cowboy Christmas Craft Fair and Concert marks a return after a one-year hiatus. Despite this break, Borsato said that long-time attendees would not see too many radical changes.

“It’s all down at the Gibraltar Room, November 24. Craft fair portion starts at 10 a.m. so that’s our Christmas Market trade show, kind of thing. We have a wide variety of vendors signed up and I’m still getting requests for more now,” Borsato said. “We have everything from more traditional Christmas arts and crafts to some more modern style, so there’s a whole wide range of vendors. I’d be here all day going over all of them.”

READ MORE: Cowboy Christmas a taste of the local west

Indeed, when asked, Borsato couldn’t highlight any one vendor over the other, saying instead he’s just so excited to see so many of them back for the fair after such a long break. He is also especially looking forward to seeing the community come out in force once again to support the museum through this fundraiser.

“I think it will be nice to see some new faces but also some familiar faces at the craft fair,” Borsato remarked, adding, “Its rejuvenating, we’ve been recovering from the wildfires and getting settled after the move, so it’s really nice to see this fundraiser happening again. We’re really excited to just offer this again and we look forward to seeing the community come out and support us again.”

From 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturday the craft fair will be in full swing before a four-hour break to set up for the concert portion of the event at 7 p.m. Borsato said they will have four front-liners performing including Alan Moberg, Ed Peekeekoot, Jason Ruscheinsky, and Bruce Rolph all for $20. Tickets are available at the museum, The Open Book and Margetts Meats.

“People who have been to the concert before know just how good these guys are, it’s traditional cowboy music,” Borsato said.

READ MORE: Music to a cowboy’s ears

While Borsato admitted it will be a busy weekend for craft fairgoers, he said he sees no reason why lakecity residents need to choose one over the other. According to him, the City of Williams Lake has sponsored a B.C. Transit service between all of the craft fairs occurring this weekend.

For $1.75 for the whole day, craft fair enthusiasts can hop on and off a shuttle bus as they travel from the Cowboy Christmas Craft Fair, the Medieval Market, the Cataline Christmas Craft Fair and St. Peter’s Anglican Church Bazaar.

“I think its really important for people to consider supporting our craft fair, since, we are the Museum of the Cariboo-Chilcotin we are home to B.C. Cowboy Hall of Fame,” Borsato said. “We’re home to a lot of vital content for the region’s history and since all the proceeds are going directly to the museum you’re not only buying a Christmas Present but also are supporting local history.”



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Patrick Davies

About the Author: Patrick Davies

An avid lover of theatre, media, and the arts in all its forms, I've enjoyed building my professional reputation in 100 Mile House.
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