A grassroots festival that hopes to inspire a love for winter activities is growing like a rolling snowball.
About 80 people took part in the curling and soup party at the Charlottetown Curling Complex on Sunday, the first of five signature events for the third annual WinterLove P.E.I. Festival.
Mathieu Arsenault, one of WinterLove’s founders, said he started the festival as a way to bring out the best winter experiences P.E.I. has to offer.
“It basically started from my experience of living in Quebec City, which has the largest winter carnival in North America,” said Arsenault, who noticed a similar fondness for winter activities while living in Russia and some Scandinavian countries. “They really embrace and enjoy winter (in those countries). I’ve always loved winter so we decided to do something to say ‘hey winter is enjoyable. Not only do we not have to complain about it, but we can really enjoy the season’.”
The festival, which now receives funding from the Rotary Club of Charlottetown Royalty, has grown in both attendance and the number of events since its inception.
This year has also seen a number of new partners on board, including the P.E.I. Association for Newcomers to Canada.
“For a lot of (newcomers), winter is a completely new thing. So to have them embrace it and come on board is really fun,” said Arsenault.
All of the festival’s signature events are being held with co-sponsors.
A Disco Skate Party at Founders Hall Outdoor Rink, which is presented by Upstreet Craft Brewing and Receiver Coffee Co., was postponed from the weekend and will now be held from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 24.
Other main events will include a cross-country skiing session with the Souris Striders Ski Club, a tubing party at Brookvale being co-hosted by Coach Atlantic and P.E.I. Association for Newcomers to Canada and an already sold out speed-skating session with Speed Skate P.E.I.
Apart from the main events, the WinterLove website also has a schedule listing many other winter-themed events happening in P.E.I. throughout February like the Jack Frost Festival, WinterDine events and public skates.
“There are a lot of (winter events) going on already, it’s just a matter of there wasn’t anything uniting them,” said Arsenault.
Stephanie Palmer, an event coordinator for the curling party, said the festival was off to a great start with a high turnout at Sunday’s event.
“And everyone seems really enthusiastic and having fun so we’re super happy,” said Palmer, noting many of the attendees were first-time curlers interested in learning a new activity.
Dennis Fleming, general manager of the Charlottetown Curling Complex, said he was exciting to team up with the festival as an event sponsor.
“We’re always looking for new members and this is a great way to get some new curlers out and introduce them to the game,” he said. “And it’s just nice to see people out and about on a nice Sunday afternoon.”
More information on the festival and events is available at www.winterlovepei.ca and the WinterLove P.E.I. Facebook page.