INSIDE THIS ISSUE Classifieds..............................................................................A6 Community Calendar ....................................................A18,19 Dining & Entertainment ................................................... A14 Find It In Fort Wayne.................................................. A8,9 Healthy Times .....................................................................A10
Serving Northeast Fort Wayne & Allen County
INfortwayne.com
November 8, 2013
Embassy readies Christmas icons By Garth Snow gsnow@kpcmedia.com
As she prepares a fabled tradition for another Christmas, Barb Richards talks about a child’s thrill at seeing the Wolf & Dessauer animated characters. When she was about 7, she watched the store’s blinds separate to reveal Santa and company in the windows of that legendary Fort Wayne department store. As she built a 37-year career in broadcasting, Richards often heralded the Thanksgiving Eve unveiling of the characters’ new windows on Harrison Street. In her first year as the Embassy Theatre’s marketing director, she still stands in awe of the assorted penguins and carolers that spend their summers on the third floor of the Indiana Hotel building. With the guidance of David and Kathy James, those characters will spring to life the evening
Erin’s House has new location for ongoing mission By Garth Snow gsnow@kpcmedia.com
PHOTO BY JANE SNOW
Embassy Theatre Marketing Director Barb Richards surveys the characters and creatures waiting to move from their summer home on the third floor to the Embassy Theatre’s Harrison Street windows. The fabled Wolf & Dessaur animated characters will come alive Thanksgiving Eve. The Embassy also will open the doors to its Festival of Trees from 6-9 p.m. that evening. The Festival of Trees will continue through Dec. 4. The window display will continue through Dec. 31.
of Nov. 27, during the Night of Lights celebration. Richards says the characters never really rest. “They get busy at night,” she says. Santa, of course, is the leader, she jokes.
She describes the plastic-covered, dormant collection as “creepy as heck.” “But I think they’re pretty,” she says. “Some of them are rather works of art. They are kind of
Santa Train to welcome kids for rides or charters a 45-minute or hourlong trip with Santa, cookies and refreshments,” Lynch said. “And it’s just a cool way to spend time with the family,” he said. “It’s gotten really popular this year because everybody’s been going to our website to learn about the Cannonball trips, and they see the Santa Train.” “We have a lot of repeat visitors,” Lynch said. The first weekend is usually the lightest, he said. Unlike the steam-driven Engine 765 that pulled the Wabash Cannonball excursions, a diesel engine will pull two cabooses. While waiting for their turn on the Santa Train, visitors may visit the food vendors, shop for souveniers, see footage of the recent Cannonball excursions, or climb aboard the 765. The railroad society is considering entertainment options. Lynch said the Cannonball excursions to Lafayette drew passengers from a wide area, and cultivated interest in the organization. He urged the public to stay tuned to the website for possible future trips. The ultimate vision is to return to Fort Wayne, where the tradition began, Lynch said. “We only have a half-mile of track to operate on out there,” he said.
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Santa Claus will visit New Haven three Saturdays in December to welcome children aboard the Santa Train. The 30-minute rides begin and end at the Fort Wayne Railroad Historical Society home at 15808 Edgerton Road. Rides continue from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Dec. 7, 14 and 21. Each ride costs $4. For details, visit fortwaynerailroad.org. Kelly Lynch, FWRHS communications manager, said the Santa Train tradition began here in about 1994, based on an earlier tradition in Fort Wayne. “And last year was our record — 2,300 people — which is pretty decent,” he said. “It’s gotten so busy in that last two years that we’ve added another caboose to expand the capacity per trip,” Lynch said. “We like to say it’s a good variation on visiting Santa at the mall, and it’s very affordable,” Lynch said. Larger families have another option available. “For the last three years we’ve been operating Santa charters, which allow families of 15 to 20 people to charter a caboose ride in the evening,” Lynch said. Santa will help to hand out some of the gifts from the family. The wood- and coal-burning stove, the Christmas lights, and the Bing Crosby-era music lend to the atmosphere. “We make
fun.” “They all go down into the windows,” she says. “Some of them get reprogrammed to move. The penguins move. Oh this See ICONS, Page A2
Erin’s House for Grieving Children has a new home. An Oct. 26 ribbon-cutting and open house introduced the public to the facility at 5670 YMCA Park Drive West. “We know everyone is eager to see the finished house,” Erin’s House Executive Director Debbie Meyer said in a news release. “It’s fun and colorful and full of
kid-friendly spaces. Most importantly, it’s home.” Erin’s House was founded in 1993, in response to the unexpected death of 5-year-old Erin Farragh in 1989. The agency had found its most recent temporary location in Georgetown Square, in August 2012. Groundbreaking for the new site was held in November 2012. The board of directors approved the project early See ERIN’S, Page A4
Lights of Love. Parkview Field. Nov. 21-30, 5-8 p.m. (With the exception of Thanksgiving Day, Nov. 28). Free admission. Memorialize your loved one with the purchase of a luminaria for $25, or a luminaria and scoreboard message for $50. A memorial fundraising project for Erin’s House for Grieving Children, in partnership with Parkview Field. Contact Audrey at Audrey@erinshouse.org, or visit erinshouse. org. (Parkview Field presents Fireworks Night Wednesday, Nov. 27, at 7:45 p.m. Free admission.)