Last weekend, Park Avenue hosted one of the country’s most prestigious outdoor fine arts events, the 51st annual Winter Park Sidewalk Art Festival, which took place here in the City of Winter Park, Florida. The 3-day event drew in some of the world’s finest and most talented artists, with a crowd of art aficionados eagerly joining the fun to see what they could find in the festival’s displays. It was undeniably a 3-day feast of non-stop browsing and buying of different art pieces. From clay, drawing and graphics, glass, digital art, fiber, leather, jewelry, paintings – the categories of the Art Festival were very impressive, even to the most seasoned of art collectors.

The festival was open from 9 in the morning to 6 in the evening on Friday and Saturday, and ended an hour earlier on Sunday at 5.

Dozens of artists vied for a total of 62 awards, all worth $67,500. All winners of the Best of Show category not only get the top prize of $10,000, they also get to be on permanent display at the City of Winter Park Public Library, along with past Best of Show winners.

The goal of the Winter Park Sidewalk Art Festival is to promote an enjoyable and nurturing environment for artists and art lovers in Central Florida. If you missed out on this festival, don’t fret, there’s always the one next year.

Another month has passed and it’s time once again for another episode of the Winter Park Country Club Golf Lecture Series, brought to you by the North Florida PGA® and as always, the Arnold Palmer Hospital for Children. The March edition of the lecture is set to take place on the 23rd of March, at exactly 6:30 in the evening. For this month, the lecture will feature renowned PGA TOUR® Erik Compton, known for his great achievements in the sport despite being afflicted with heart disease.

For his dedication to the sport of golf, Compton is without a doubt an inspiration to those who suffer from heart disease. After receiving two heart transplants, Compton still competes with the very best golfers in the world today. After attending college at the University of Georgia, Compton turned pro in 2001. He has so far played in close to 20 PGA TOUR events.

Since space for the lecture is very limited, tickets will be sold on a first come first serve basis. Tickets to the event are priced at $10, with light refreshments to be served during the lecture.

Interested? Be sure to grab your tickets now and don’t miss out on this great golf lecture.

Florida Governor Charlie Crist recently announced March as Florida Bicycle Month, and as a way of recognizing the theme, the City of Winter Park Pedestrian & Bicycle and
Advisory Board will be hosting the annual Bike from Park to Park, now on its 2nd straight year.

The event, taking place on the 26th of March at 8 in the morning, begins with avid bikers starting the ride at Winter Park, Florida’s, picturesque Mead Garden. Participants at the event will be treated to some morning refreshments compliments of Panera Bread.

Bike from Park to Park is a project that’s in line with the goal of promoting Winter Park as a city that’s friendly to pedestrians and bikers, an environment where innovations are embraced without severe consequences to the environment.

This event is also a part of Winter Park’s “Green Local Government” initiative, a mission to transform the city into one of the United States’ premiere eco-friendly cities through “green” policies and programs. Bike from Park to Park was also created to raise awareness on the importance of living an active and healthy lifestyle.

Individuals interested in joining this event are requested to RSVP on or before the 23rd of March, Tuesday, via e-mail. Send your responses to trafficguy@cityofwinterpark.org or call 407-599-3233.

With spring just around the corner, it’s time once again to enjoy the great outdoors and the fast green scenery here in Winter Park, Fl. The city is holding an event next month that’ll let you do just that. Interested? Read on.

The Multifaith Education Project, together with the City of Winter Park is proud to once more bring you the 7th annual Trees for Peace Interfaith Tree Planting Project, which takes place on the 19th of April, Monday, at Lake Island Park, situated along West Morse Boulevard here in the city. Winter Park Mayor Kenneth W. Bradley will be present during the opening ceremonies to officially kick things off at 11:30 in the morning. The program will be led by the director of the Multifaith Education Project, Louise Sheehy.

Over 60 students from 3 different schools in the Central Florida region will come together next month to plant trees for peace. And as a way of bridging the gap between different cultures and beliefs, students get to bless the newly planted trees according to their respective faiths.

Of course, such an event wouldn’t be complete without a bit of celebration. A picnic will be held right after the activity on the lawns of Lake Island Park.