CLAUSES - Mr. and Mrs. Claus (also known as Starfire owners Gene and Bonnie Miller) visited the Starfire Event Center last weekeend, sharing arts and crafts, games, movies, and snacks.
Winter wonderland
Mr. and Mrs. Claus make third annual trip to Starfire
Mr. and Mrs. Claus make third annual trip to Starfire
Sat, 12/31/2022 - 5:28pm
This past weekend, the Starfire Event Center transported many area children to a winter wonderland. Saturday, Dec. 3, 10-11:30 a.m. and from 2-4 p.m. and Sunday from 3-5 p.m., children and families could move among a variety of stations designed to be memorable and entertaining.
The event featured arts and crafts activities, cornhole games, Christmas movies, and snacks. It kept the children and their families busy. Some even had the opportunity to book a private photo session in one of the event center’s back rooms with Mr. and Mrs. Santa Claus and enjoy the magical scene around them with trees that stand tall and snow that is “warm and never melts.”
The Winter Wonderland event has been a staple of the Starfire Event Center for three years. Started by owners Gene and Bonnie Miller, it brings in hundreds of children per year, usually averaging about 100 per day.
“We love doing Christmas stuff,” Gene shares. “It’s a lot of fun for us to dress up as Mr. and Mrs. Santa Claus.”
It takes them a day or two to prepare for the event. The setup is easy, since all the supplies for the private photo room are on site. “We keep them in a storage room in the building,” Gene explains. “It makes it less difficult to set things up.”
All of their helpers dress like elves. The cool part? The Millers recruit special needs and handicapped children to help oversee the activities. Hiring them throughout all of their businesses as much as possible is something the Millers have focused on these past few years as a way to give back to the Waseca community.
“We wanted to provide them with actual real-life jobs,” Bonnie says. “There is a stigma that they can’t work. But they are more than capable.”
One worker, Xander Spies, a grandson to the Millers, enjoyed himself on Saturday. “I have a lot of fun doing this,” he said. “It’s great working with the kids, and I just love Christmas! The photo room looks pretty cool, too.”
For kids and families that haven’t seen the Winter Wonderland yet, there is still time to do so. The event will happen on Saturday and Sunday, Dec. 10 and 11 from 10-11:30 a.m. and 2-4 p.m. both days. It is completely free to attend.
“It’s been great doing it the past three years,” Bonnie reminisces. “We’ve made a lot of great memories with this. We hope to make it an annual Waseca tradition for years to come.”