Nothing evokes the Christmas season like glittering, glowing handmade ornaments on the family Christmas tree. In view of this, Jacksonport State Park is offering a special Christmas ornament making workshop in mid-December.
The “Victorian-Style Christmas Ornament Workshop” will be presented on December 15th, 2018 from 9 a.m. – 12 p.m.
Nineteenth-century Christmas ornaments were handmade from natural items, cards, doilies, ribbons and lace. This year we will make three different historically authentic Victorian-style Christmas ornaments to help make your tree beautiful.
Included this year are: Victorian Card Ornaments, Felt Cardinal Ornaments, and Traditional Christmas Stockings to hang on the mantle!
During the Victorian era, the stockings hung by the fire on Christmas Eve were the children’s everyday socks. Today, we make fancy stockings to hang on the fireplace mantle for St. Nicholas to fill with presents, or to use as Christmas decorations
This workshop is especially nice for parents, grandparents, and children to do together. Contact the park for more information. There is a minimum of 6 participants for this workshop, with a maximum of 25. The admission fee is $7.50 per person to cover supplies. Advance reservations are required by 3 p.m. December 13th, 2018. Call 870-523-2143 to make your reservations. (All supplies will be furnished.)
Participants will meet at the new Visitor Information Center and the Workshop will be held inside the Courthouse in the upstairs courtroom. The courthouse is accessible for those with mobility disabilities. Contact the park at 870-523-2143 for additional information.
Cathy Drew is a lifelong resident of the region that she loves to promote. She was born in downtown Batesville in the late ’60s, located in one of the eight counties she now enjoys encouraging people to visit.
Drew became associated with the Ozark Gateway Region in 1990 while working at the ad agency (The Media Market Inc.). The agency handled marketing for the regional association, where she and her co-workers produced an annual tabloid publication. She began working as the Ozark Gateway Region director in June 2000.
After Drew became director, she took the region to the next level by helping the tourism organization create a new website and moved it from the old newspaper paper tabloid publication to a color magazine format. She helped open a visitor center for the Ozark Gateway, allowing visitors to pick up information from the entire state 24/7. Over the years, Drew has helped the organization meet new marketing goals, such as in- and out-of-state marketing, assuring that all 100,000 copies of their magazines are distributed each year.
In 2016, she assisted in creating the first Ozark Gateway Region Golf Classic. The tournament continues to grow each year, allowing the organization to expand its co-op program and helping each county have dedicated promotion. Drew stays busy at Ozark Gateway as the ad sales manager, magazine editor, day-to-day office operations, trade show representative, and magazine distribution representative, all while ensuring that the region is represented all over Arkansas and southern Missouri.
Drew was featured in several local and statewide publications over the years, as well as the 1997 cover of the Ozark Gateway Region tabloid, along with her then 4-year-old son, Jon. She has received several awards, such as the Batesville Rotarian of the Year in 2010 and a three-time Paul Harris Fellow.
She also has served as an Independence County election commissioner for several years. She now serves as their co-election coordinator, helping with behind-the-scenes management of voting equipment, day-to-day election deadlines, and poll worker training.
Drew is Batesville Rotary Club Past President, and is the Rotary Clubs’ current membership chair.
In March of 2018, Drew was honored with induction into the Arkansas Tourism Hall of Fame for her many years of dedicated service to the tourism industry.