KIDS FESTIVAL
My Kingston Kids Fest returns with Willy Wonka-inspired theme on Saturday.
KINGSTON, N.Y. » Enter a land of pure imagination as the Lace Mill is transformed into a Willy Wonkainspired chocolate factory Saturday during the second annual My Kingston Kids Fest.
Frank Waters, My Kingston Kid’s executive director and a Lace Mill resident, said he wanted to do something new this year.
“We wanted to do something different with the building, do something that made sense,” Waters said. “This building used to be factory, I thought of something fun, transforming this factory into a chocolate factory.”
The former United States Lace Curtain Mill, with its historic industrial-age architecture featuring brick walls, large factory walls and a brick smokestack reaching above the building, serves as the perfect backdrop for the event, Waters said.
The event will feature special candy bars, one of them with a Golden Ticket, and even Willy Wonka himself, Waters said.
“The golden ticket chocolate bar is our fundraiser,” Waters said.
Last year’s My Kingston Kids Fest, which featured an “Alice in Wonderland” theme, complete with a yellow brick road, attracted about 500 people during the course of a Saturday afternoon.
“A majority of families stayed for at least two hours,” Waters said.
But he while Waters considered last year’s event a success, he knew he wanted to do something new.
“We wanted to do something different and make it a little better,” Waters said.
Waters said after last year’s event, he has a better idea of what activities kids want.
“I learned it’s important to have things children are interested in,” Waters said. “As adults we have an idea that we know what kids want.”
Kids enjoys a variety of activities they can take part in, he added.
One of the most popular elements of last year’s Kids Fest, the Tea Party, returns with a new red velvet chocolate theme, Waters said.
The tea party will feature tons of red velvetbaked goods, including cupcakes, and there will even be a chocolate fountain, he added.
Waters said last year’s tea party proved to be so popular that they planned to have 40 kids by reservation and ended up having more than 200 take part.
This year organizers more than doubled the number of reservations to 100 for the activity, which spans three sessions at 1 p.m. 1:30 p.m. and 2 p.m.
While the reservations have filled up, Waters said organizers always find a way to make sure a kid can enjoy it.
A chocolate factory tour will traverse the Lace Mill’s East, Main and West Galleries and along the way kids can stop for a candy making workshop hosted by Diane Reeder of the Kingston Candy Bar, Waters said.
Standing in the Lace Mill’s West Gallery, Waters offered a preview of the “chocolate factory” tour.
Kids will learn about different candies at the candy stations, go through a maze and watch the classic 1971 Gene Wilder version of “Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory” as they wait to enter tea party.
The Main Gallery serves as the heart of the factory tour.
“It looks like a factory,” Waters said, as he passed the large boilers in the large room that were left intact from the building’s industrial past.
Several of Waters’ Lace Mill neighbors are lending a hand, including Autumn Pond, who will play Willy Wonka, and Artist Soap Box Derby fixture Felix Olivieri, who is making Mr. Wonka’s hat.
The Oompa Loompas may even make an appearance, Waters said.
Sharon Jaeckel does all the baking and even buys all of the ingredients, helping keep the tea party free, Waters said.
“Without her we’d have to charge for these things to be able to afford to do it,” Waters said.
Kids can take part in a special puzzle party, which focuses on African-American history and culture.
“Kids get to put puzzles together and unscramble words,” Waters said.
In the past, the kids were so creative they managed to make up 100 words from one name, he added.
Kids will get to pick little gifts, which also have a chocolate theme, Waters said.
Other activities include a touch-a-truck event, featuring a fire engine from the Volunteer Firemen’s Hall and Museum in Uptown, and a school bus from Ethan Allen Transportation.
On a recent morning, Waters was chatting by phone with Seed Song Farm, which hosted then My Kingston Kids Halloween Fest last year, about bringing in a tractor and hay wagon. He’s also working on getting a bulldozer to round out the assortment of vehicles kids can play around.
Kids can also create work of art from recycled materials, Waters said
Costumes are encouraged, and they don’t have to be connected with a chocolate theme, Waters said.
“It’s strictly about imagination,” Waters said.
Families can enjoy music throughout the day, including a performance by the Midtown-based Center For Creative Education,
or browse 30 different vendors ranging from arts and crafts to community organizations.
“The YMCA Farm Project is doing something really nice with chocolate,” Waters said.
The afternoon wraps up with a big dance party at 3:30 p.m. that has a $250 cash price for the winner.
Waters said he founded My Kingston Kids to create a place where parents could find strictly kids-friendly activities when his daughter was a toddler.
Creating a local kids-focused website came naturally to Waters, who works in graphic and web design.
The mykingstonkids. com website had its soft launch in 2015 and its formal launch in January 2017, Waters said.
Waters said the reaction to My Kingston Kids and its social media pages has been great and more recently it has expanded into radio with My Kingston Kids Radio, which Waters hosts with his son Raheen Waters from 7 a.m.-9 a.m. each Saturday on WKNY 1490 and online at radiokingston.com
As for which Willy Wonka film Waters enjoys the best, he admitted his favorite is the 2005 one staring Johnny Depp, but his wife prefers the original one.
“We’re showing kids the old one over the new one, which is interesting,” Waters said.