According to one of the event’s organizers, Shyloh Pasqua of the Bryson RA, the event was the collaborative effort of several local organizations and an opportunity for the municipality to give back to locals.

“Our intention behind this was more of a thank you,” she said.

Festivities kicked off on Friday evening with a series of sled-dog races on the ball diamond, bingo inside the hall and ice-dancing on the outdoor rink.

On Saturday morning, the festival resumed with a pancake and sausage breakfast, where Pontiac MP Will Amos was decked out in an apron serving attendees.

At around noon, organizers announced the official opening of the town’s newly-built outdoor rink as well as the winner of the town’s month-long snow-sculpting contest, Melanie Ostrom, who won a family-of-four pass to Patinage en Foret in Lac-des-Loups, Que.

The day continued with a long list of free activities and entertainment, including pony sleigh rides, a pick-up hockey game for youth (10-15-years-old) as well as intricate wood carving demonstrations.

Later in the afternoon, 60 hockey players convened at the rink to compete in a 3-on-3 ball hockey tournament on ice. To the crowd’s delight, more than a few players took their fair share of tumbles, making it look like they were playing slip-n-slide instead of hockey.

Featuring six teams, the tournament consisted of elimination bracket, which saw the Danglers come out on top after defeating the Multiple Scorers 3-2 in the final.

Inside the main hall, several volunteers from the Lions Club and the Golden Age Club worked hard in the kitchen preparing enormous portions of noodles, tomato sauce and buns as a large crowd of attendees gathered for a sit-down supper. Keeping the folks entertained a slew of local musicians stepped on the main stage and delivered some tunes.

In the evening, the festival concluded with a variety show and a dance inside the RA Hall, where a number of local musicians hit the stage and played a number of classics.

Pasqua explained that the festival was a way of bringing back an event that used to be very popular in Bryson a couple of decades ago.

“We haven’t had a festival in town for at least 20 years,” she said. “It used to be an annual event and it was big. It started on like the Thursday night and went until Sunday with a big pageant and you name it, it was there.”

With the development of the new rink, Pasqua explained that RA members were eager to find a way to showcase the rink to the Pontiac once it opened.

“We just thought, ‘We’re doing a winter festival,’” she said.

After forming a sub-committee for the festival, RA members reached out to the municipality as well as other local organizations to suggest the idea to them, Pasqua said.

“We didn’t feel like it should just be an RA thing,” she said. “It should be a town thing.”

While, this year, the festival only lasted two days, Pasqua said that the event was a smash-hit nonetheless, noting that the new rink played a significant role in the event’s success.

“We really didn’t even have to go overboard,” she said. “Just being down here with a whole bunch of people and the rink, just they’re loving it.”

For Pasqua, bringing the winter festival back to Bryson brought a great sense of joy, knowing how many people it brought together and the positive impact it had the town’s atmosphere over the weekend.

“It’s just good to get together and to see people come together as a community,” she said. “It gives you that feel warm feeling. It’s the feeling of community spirit and collaborating with all the other groups, getting along and sharing this celebration.”

For the town’s first winter festival in a long time, Pasqua was very satisfied with the overall turnout, noting that organizers started coordinating it in the fall of 2019.

“We managed to pull this together pretty quick,” she said. “Here’s hoping everybody’s on board for next year. It’s a lot of work.”

From left: Kinley Huckabone, Shelby Pasqua, Ella Robillard and Kendall Huckabone enjoy themselves at the colouring table on Saturday afternoon.

Multipe scorers player, Eric Robillard, closes in on a breakaway against the Ugly Pucklings in the 3-on-3 ball hockey tournamnet at the Bryson Winter Festival

Goaltender Jason Huckabone blows some snow in the air after making a save on Saturday afternoon in Bryson.

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