CAZENOVIA — Caz Life, an events committee within the Greater Cazenovia Area Chamber of Commerce (GCACC), is partnering with local businesses and organizations to present a four-day celebration of all things winter.
This year’s enhanced Caz Winter Fest will be held Feb. 8-11 at various locations throughout the community.
The packed schedule includes traditional Winter Fest events, such as Cazenovia High School’s talent show and snow sculpture competition, plus a variety of new offerings, such as community curling at Meier’s Creek Brewing Co., a guided night hike/snowshoe from the brewery to Lorenzo, ice sculptures, and a “Cocoa Crawl” and pop-ups at the downtown shops.
Caz Life was established as the “business-to-consumer” events and marketing arm of the GCACC in the spring of 2023 to help foster local business development, promote tourism, and implement effective marketing strategies to enhance the vibrancy and economic growth of the village.
“For many of us who have lived in Cazenovia over the years, [Winter Fest] is a tradition that we have loved seeing grow and evolve,” said Caz Life member Caitlin Gambee on Jan. 23. “We had a community meeting today, and it was incredible to go around the group and have people talk about their favorite memories from years past. They highlighted events that we see annually but also events that have long been retired from Winter Fest. It was clear that Winter Fest has been a source of joy in the community for generations of Cazenovians.”
The 2024 Caz Winter Fest is made possible by a $40,000 grant awarded to the CazArts creative alliance through the office of Assemblyman Al Stirpe.
A portion of the funding, which is intended to be used to enhance economic activity in Cazenovia through marketing and events, is being used to support this year’s expanded and enhanced Winter Fest events.
“In the middle of winter, it’s important to celebrate and bring Cazenovia folks together,” said CazArts President Geoffrey Navias. “It’s [also] great and fun to bring people to Cazenovia. Winter Fest in Cazenovia has been a tradition for the last 50 years, and this year, there has been terrific planning and great energy to bring vitality and new activities to the festival. CazArts is delighted [to be] working with so many others to add to the festivities.”
The Stirpe grant application was facilitated by the Cazenovia Area Community Development Association (CACDA).
“The schedule has always included a lot of community-focused events, like ice skating and sledding,” said CACDA Executive Director Lauren Lines, who also serves on the CazArts board. “Our goal is to maintain that while also creating events that will bring people from around the region to enjoy winter in Cazenovia.”
Also integral to this year’s event is Michael John Heagerty, a well-known community facilitator in Syracuse whose work on Winter Fest is being funded through the Stone Quarry Art Park (SQAP) visiting artist program.
According to SQAP CEO Emily Zaengle, Heagerty’s contributions have included coordinating a Saturday afternoon/evening line-up of events designed to draw visitors to the village, promoting Winter Fest to audiences in Syracuse, and reaching out to local businesses to coordinate their involvement in the celebration.
One such business is the Pewter Spoon café and eatery on Albany Street, which is partnering with SQAP and Cazenovia artist Patricia Christakos to bring outdoor art to the village.
On Saturday, Feb. 10, Christakos’ video art will be projected onto the east-facing wall of the Pewter Spoon building from 4 to 7 p.m.
“We’re very excited to be working in collaboration with the Stone Quarry Art Park and Michael John Heagerty on an evening art exhibition right on our building,” said Pewter Spoon Manager Ava Carmeli. “We hope that this event will be the first of many public art exhibits on our building and in the village.”
Carmeli added that Pewter Spoon will have extended hours that evening and will be offering food and drink specials.
Heagerty has also helped coordinate Saturday’s ice sculpture demonstrations with The Ice Farm from 3 to 4 p.m. at the Cazenovia Public Library, Hot Flip Drinks — mixed drinks heated with a red-hot iron — with the British Blacksmith from 3 to 5 p.m. at Madison County Distillery, and a “Night Light Skate” from 3 to 6 p.m. at Burton Street Ice Rink.
According to Gambee, Caz Life is excited to introduce a “Medallion Hunt” to the Winter Fest offerings this year.
She explained that the Caz Life team has created a medallion that will be hidden somewhere in Cazenovia.
“It will be on public property and easily accessible to anyone looking for it,” she said. “Clues will be announced once daily via the Caz Life Facebook and Instagram starting Thursday, Feb. 8, and we hope to have a grand prize winner by the end of Winter Fest weekend. Once the medallion is found, Caz Life can be called, and the $250 prize can be claimed.”
Caz Life is also partnering with Meier’s Creek Brewing Co. to bring the sport of curling to the Cazenovia community this winter by installing a curling sheet on the brewery’s back lawn.
“We think that curling is such a unique winter event, perfect for cold weather communities like ours,” said Gambee. “After speaking with some local curling enthusiasts, we decided to test the waters this season to see if this could be a tourism draw within and outside of the community. Often, businesses can see the winter as a time to hibernate, but we were curious to see if [making] some efforts to embrace winter [could have an impact]. Caz Life initially reached out to Meier’s Creek in November to see if we could build a program together, and we were very excited to hear that they were interested in joining us in this effort. We hope that in years to come, curling might be a sport played at multiple venues within Cazenovia. There has been talk of creating leagues and tournaments, and we are just excited to be a part of the conversation.”
If the weather cooperates, Meier’s Creek will be hosting guided “Learn to Curl” sessions on Friday and Saturday during Winter Fest.
Registration is required and can be done at cazenovia.com/events-1/learn-to-curl-at-meiers-creek.
“Since curling is weather-dependent, we will only open up registration when we feel comfortable that it will be cold enough for the event to proceed,” Gambee said. “We hope to have a clear idea of what the weather [will] be about a week ahead of time.”
To learn more about Caz Life, visit Cazenovialife.com and the Caz Life Facebook page.
Promoting Caz as a winter/outdoor recreation destination
According to Lines, the $40,000 Stirpe grant that was awarded to CazArts is also funding a digital marketing campaign to promote winter in Cazenovia.
Recently, CACDA was awarded $50,000 through Empire State Development’s Market New York program to host and market events focused on enhancing Cazenovia’s visibility as an outdoor recreation destination and promoting the historic business district.
“The chamber — Caz Life — will be providing the matching funds and will be partnering with [CACDA] to decide how best to use the grant,” said Lines.
Winter Fest 2024 schedule as of press time
The schedule is weather-dependent and subject to change. Visit cazenovia.com/winter for additional Winter Fest event details and schedule updates.
Thursday, Feb. 8
All-Day —Medallion Hunt around Cazenovia. For clues, visit facebook.com/CazenoviaNYLife.
6 to 6:45 p.m. — Free community yoga class with Thea Griffin at St. James Church. RSVP by texting
7 p.m. — “Bridesmaids” movie screening at Madison County Distillery.
Friday, Feb. 9
All-Day — Medallion Hunt around Cazenovia. For clues, visit facebook.com/CazenoviaNYLife.
10 a.m. to 5 p.m. — Complimentary snowshoeing at The Shoppes at Johnny Appleseed.
10 a.m. to 6 p.m. — Friends of the Library book sale in the Cazenovia Public Library Community Room.
12 to 1:30 p.m. — Curling at Meier’s Creek Brewing Co. Pre-registration required/weather dependent. Sign up at cazenovia.com/events-1/learn-to-curl-at-meiers-creek.
1 to 4 p.m. — Crafternoon Café “Snowflake Jewelry” at the Cazenovia Public Library. Pre-register through the library’s website, cazenoviapubliclibrary.org.
2 to 3:30 p.m. — Curling at Meier’s Creek Brewing Co. Pre-registration required/weather dependent. Sign up at cazenovia.com/events-1/learn-to-curl-at-meiers-creek.
3 to 5 p.m. — Community skating at Burton Street Ice Rink. BYO skates.
7 to 8 p.m. — Winterfest Talent Show at Cazenovia High School.
7:30 p.m. — Live music by Kyle Micho at McCarthy’s Irish Pub.
Saturday, Feb. 10
All-Day — Medallion Hunt around Cazenovia. For clues, visit facebook.com/CazenoviaNYLife.
All-Day — Ice sculptures at Madison County Distillery, Memorial (Cannon) Park, Meier’s Creek Brewing Co., and Lorenzo State Historic Site.
7 a.m. to 12 p.m. — Pancake breakfast at the American Legion. No RSVP is required.
9 a.m. to 12 p.m. — Cazenovia High School Snow Sculpture Competition at Memorial (Cannon) Park.
10 a.m. to 5 p.m. — Complimentary snowshoeing at The Shoppes at Johnny Appleseed.
10 a.m. to 4 p.m. — Friends of the Library book sale in the Cazenovia Public Library Community Room.
11 a.m. — Live music for kids with Henry in the Cazenovia Public Library Reference Room.
11 a.m. to 7 p.m. — “Fire & Ice:” The Cazenovia Masons’ famous chicken BBQ and soft serve at Nelson Creamery.
12 to 1:30 p.m. — Curling at Meier’s Creek Brewing Co. Pre-registration required/weather dependent. Sign up at cazenovia.com/events-1/learn-to-curl-at-meiers-creek.
12 to 4 p.m. — Cocoa Crawl at the downtown shops.
10 a.m. to 4 p.m. — Pop-Ups: Custom wood creations by Bearhands Woodshop and baked goods by Babycakes by Becca at Jasmine Rae Floral Design. Complimentary hot chocolate snickerdoodle cookies.
12 to 4 p.m. — Pop-Up: Fika baked goods and complimentary hot chocolate at 20|EAST.
12 to 4 p.m. — Complimentary spicy hot chocolate at Cazenovia Artisans.
1 to 3 p.m. — Horse-drawn sleigh rides by Lamplit & Nutz in Training Farm at Lorenzo State Historic Site.
2 to 3:30 p.m. — Curling at Meier’s Creek Brewing Co. Pre-registration required/weather dependent. Sign up at cazenovia.com/events-1/learn-to-curl-at-meiers-creek.
3 to 4 p.m. — Ice sculpture demos by The Ice Farm at Cazenovia Public Library.
3 to 5 p.m. — Hot Flip Drinks with the British Blacksmith at Madison County Distillery.
4 to 7 p.m. — Video art/outdoor light mural at Pewter Spoon.
3 to 6 p.m. — Night Light Skate at Burton Street Ice Rink.
5 to 7 p.m. — Light the Walk: Guided night hike/snowshoe from Meier’s Creek Brewing Co. to Lorenzo State Historic Site. Tours leave every 15 minutes and are about a half-hour long. Snowshoes will be available. Horse-drawn sleigh rides in both directions.
5 to 8 p.m. — Live music by Jess Novak Band at Meier’s Creek Brewing Co.
5 to 8 p.m. — Live music by The Tie Dyer Duo at Madison County Distillery.
7 to 9 p.m. — Bonfire & S’mores at Meier’s Creek Brewing Co.
7 to 9 p.m. — Horse-drawn sleigh rides by Lamplit & Nutz in Training Farm from Lorenzo to Meier’s Creek Brewing Co.
7:30 p.m. — Live music by Jason Schnitt at McCarthy’s Irish Pub.
Sunday, Feb. 11
All-Day — Medallion Hunt around Cazenovia. For clues, visit facebook.com/CazenoviaNYLife.
All-Day — Ice sculptures at Madison County Distillery, Memorial (Cannon) Park, Meier’s Creek Brewing Co., Lorenzo State Historic Site, and Cazenovia Public Library.
10:30 to 11:30 a.m. — Yoga in the Cellar with Edge Syracuse at Meier’s Creek Brewing Co. $20 per person. Registration required.
11 a.m. to 4 p.m. — Brunch at Meier’s Creek Brewing Co.
11 a.m. to 5 p.m. — Complimentary snowshoeing at The Shoppes at Johnny Appleseed.
11 a.m. to 7 p.m. — Ice cream at Nelson Creamery.
12 to 4 p.m. — Community skating at the Burton Street Ice Rink. BYO skates.
12 to 1:30 p.m. — Cazenovia Preservation Foundation “Snowshoe Sunday” at Meier’s Creek Brewing Co.
4 p.m. — Live music by Harvey Fonda at McCarthy’s Irish Pub.
