Kids Will "Go Nuts" at New White Squirrel Village

A children's village, based on old fashioned carnival games and prizes, will be the centerpiece of this year's White Squirrel activities. The games will include a duck pond, basketball shoot, ring toss, bean bag toss, fishing booth, bowling game, and penny toss to name a few. The object will be to win as many tickets as possible to earn prizes from a fully stocked toy booth. The prizes range from realistic insect rings and kid's miniature binoculars to brightly colored boomerangs and stuffed white squirrels. The location is set for the drive through lanes at the downtown Wachovia bank building on Main Street.

"We really worked to make this a kid-centric event this year," said Phil Davis, volunteer event coordinator. "We want to see lots of smiling faces going away with pockets full of treasured little prizes. "These are often the best memories that kids have," agreed Madrid Zimmerman, Executive Director of the Heart of Brevard. "It's not the big expensive things we do for our kids, but the fun, one-on-one type activities, that they will recall for years to come."

The White Squirrel Village will be staffed by volunteers from the Brevard Band Parent's Association. Tickets will be 25 cents each to play a game, contest or activity. "We want this to be both fun and affordable for the families coming here, and this is one way that lets the kids have fun, while the parents can shop, dine, and have a little fun time of their own," Davis continued. And he should know, having four volunteering offspring of his own on hand to help. "It's truly a family affair and we'd have it no other way."

Things are getting "nuttier" by the minute!

Well we're down to the final two weeks before the biggest and best White Squirrel Festival ever! We've had an amazing response from local sponsors that really help to bring this all together.

I want to put in a special plug for Misty, owner of Squirrel Store. This is her second year coming up for the festival and she will have all things squirrel. If you don't believe me just visit her online shop. And she's got a couple of friends that are also rehabbers coming up from Greenville, SC. So there will be all kinds of Squirrel "Nuts" here this year. We will also have our own resident rehabber here and our own biologist who has studied the squirrels and conducted a count of them each year!

More news to come shortly...

New Activities for this year's Festival!

This is a press release that will be going out this week...

This year's 3rd Annual White Squirrel Festival, slated for Memorial Day weekend, has grown considerably bigger and better thanks to new activities, merchants, music, vendors and sponsors. The latest addition to the schedule is a Planetarium show 11:00am to 8pm Saturday, May 27th, entitled "Immersive Tours of the Universe." According to the show's producers, audience members will be able to "fly anywhere in the Universe, from the surface of the Earth to farthest galaxies." The portable digital dome theater allows participants to become immersed in moving imagery, that provides an awe-inspiring journey through NASA's astronomical data. The producers promise a show viewers will never forget. A major portion of the cost of the show is being underwritten by Steve Owen & Associates, a major sponsor of this year's White Squirrel Festival. The inflatable dome will be housed in the old upstairs gymnasium on the same floor as the downtown Steve Owen & Associates offices. The 26 foot ceiling space allows ample room for the dome to be inflated, as well as seating space for those waiting in line.

In addition Animalogic will be on hand with a variety of exotic animals. Animalogic is a non-profit organization dedicated to educating children and informing the community regarding exotic and native animal conservation, biology, ecology, environmental and other animal sciences. Their goal is to utilize live "animal ambassadors" as educators. In addition to public appearances such as The White Squirrel Festival, these animal ambassadors also travel to special needs children and retirement homes for touch therapy.

A third new element is the White Squirrel Kid's Village, which will be staffed by volunteers from the Brevard High School Band Parent's Association. The Village will have carnival type games to play where children of all ages will be able to win tickets in exchange for prizes. While the Animalogic display is free, there will be a nominal charge both the Planetarium and the White Squirrel Village to help defray costs.

"Our goal is to provide a low cost, interactive, family-friendly venue this year that will be a real treat for for residents and visitors from age 3 to 93," states Madrid Zimmerman, Executive Director of the Heart of Brevard, the nonprofit downtown development organization backing the event. "We're thrilled to have these new venues, which will only add to the two days of non-stop live music, from nationally recognized bands."

The event is estimated to attract between 12,000 to 15,000 visitors, or almost twice the population of the town itself. "We're already getting reports from vendors that they can't find hotel space anywhere in Transylvania County," reports Phil Davis, one of the event coordinators. "I think some of the folks in town may just want to plan on staying this Memorial Day weekend," Davis continues, "since the two days of music alone would be a $50 ticket anywhere else." Most of the funding for the event comes from the festival's major sponsors which include Steve Owen & Associates, Asheville Regional Airport, Transylvania Community Hospital, Wachovia, Wal-mart, State Farm, Yellow Book, United Community Bank, The White Squirrel Shoppe, Al Platt, The City of Brevard, and the Transylvania Tourist Development Association.

Those interested in obtaining the latest information on the festival, including the most recent updates to the music and activities schedules, are asked to visit http://WhiteSquirrelFestival.com.