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Appleton Downtown, Incorporated (ADI), in partnership with Thrivent Financial, will host a free “Holiday Fun Fest” event this Saturday, Dec. 19, with special activities in Houdini Plaza and ice sculptures along College Avenue. The festivities begin with the opening of the Farm and Holiday Handcrafted Gift Market inside City Center Plaza at 9am.

The crown jewel of the day is the Thrivent Financial Avenue of Ice, featuring holiday-themed ice sculptures at 20 Downtown Appleton locations, along with the chance to view professional ice sculpting demonstrations from 11:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m. in Houdini Plaza.

Additional event highlights include:

• The chance to see live reindeer, visits with Santa, horse-drawn wagon rides, outdoor holiday music, kids activities and refreshments, all offered from 10:30 a.m. – 2:30 p.m. in Houdini Plaza
• Farm and Holiday Handcrafted Gift Market inside City Center Plaza from 9 a.m. – 1:30 p.m.
• Cookie Decorating with Mrs. Claus at the Holiday Handcrafted Gift Market from 10:30 a.m. while supplies last.
• One Stop Elf Shop Kids Market – a holiday store featuring reasonably priced gifts for kids to purchase for parents, siblings and friends with the help of an elf – offered from 9 a.m. – 1 p.m., inside City Center Plaza, next to The Building for Kids Children’s Museum

Downtown merchants and restaurant and pub owners will also welcome event attendees and shoppers looking for last-minute, unique gift ideas in time for holiday gift-giving or a bite to eat throughout the day.

“We are excited to offer this festive day of activities along College Avenue again this year,” noted Anne Wiegman, ADI marketing director. “This event truly showcases the uniqueness of Downtown Appleton, which is made up of 95 percent locally owned businesses that are happy to welcome shoppers and visitors year round.”

For a listing of Downtown locations featuring holiday-themed ice sculptures, visit the ADI website at http://www.appletondowntown,org.

Presenting sponsors are: Thrivent Financial and Tundraland. Additional sponsors include: the City of Appleton, US Bank, Action Painting, WE Energies, Looy’s Dogs, Skyline Technologies and EPS.