VERO BEACH — Riverside Children’s Theatre kicked off the holiday season Nov. 18-20 with its annual fund raiser, the Festival of Trees. Now in its fourteenth year, the Festival has become a tradition with the Vero Beach community.
Decorated by local designers, the trees and Gingerbread Village took center stage in all forms both traditional and contemporary.
Twelve awards were given out including People’s Choice and Children’s Favorite awards that were voted on by patrons attending the Festival. Best gingerbread and best in show was Hark the Herald Angels, designed by Marlina Badenhop.
Other awards are as follows: Best tall tree was Peppermint Dreams designed by Ann Marie Chiarenza of Vero US 1 Nissan; best table top tree was Let It Be designed by Kathy Scures-Gutierrez DDS; best miniature tree was Gloria in Excelsis Deo! designed by Debbie Collins and Shotsi Lajoie; best traditional tree was Big Band Wonderful by Regency Park residents; best contemporary tree was Pinkalicious designed by Liz Hancock and Mary Gerkin of Once Upon a Tea Party; best wreath was designed by Sue Currier; best gingerbread by a novice was What Child is This? by the Home School Girls; best interpretation of the Festival theme, “A Season of Song” was Somewhere Over the Rainbow by Deb Daly and Lee Ann Hall of Decorative Arts.
The People’s Choice award went to Honu Hale Turtle House designed by Danielle Beckmann and the Children’s Favorite was and Visions of Frosting Danced through their Heads by Ashlee Wykoff and Barbara Monday of Frosting.
All proceeds of the Festival support the programs of Riverside Children’s Theatre that last year served over 21,000 children and families on the Treasure Coast.
For information about the Festival of Trees or about Riverside Children’s Theatre, phone 772-234-8052.
