Royally Flushed Casino Night 2019 was a big hit! Many of our attendees won great prizes and enjoyed a night filled with fun entertainment, yummy food, and Tito’s Handmade Vodka specialty drinks. A big, “THANK YOU” to our event sponsors, Tito’s Handmade Vodka and Cadan Technologies, along with the many silent auction donors, the Klondike Kates for their fun performances, enVision Hotel for accommodations, and our guests who spent the night with us. 

Due to the overwhelming support generous donors, our silent auction featured 45 amazing packages. We used a new online bidding platform and allowed those not at Royally Flushed a chance to win. All items sold, and many walked away with valuable goodies. 

We collected donations for Emma Norton, nonprofit organization actively combating poverty in Saint Paul and Ramsey County by partnering with women, children and families who are homeless and experiencing the challenges of mental and/or chemical disabilities. A popular activity last year, Emma Norton brought back their bra pong, and attendees had a great time trying to make it in. 

Along with blackjack and poker, the night included some more fun games involving giant inflatable dice and throwing darts at cards to get the best hand. Attendees who mastered these games were entered into a drawing for a prize! 

We enjoyed meeting the 2020 Queen of Snows candidates, and they did a fabulous job selling raffle tickets and facilitating our games throughout the night. The current Queen of Snows and Princesses were also in attendance and tested their luck at our card games. 

Klondike Kate performances kept us rocking all night. We are so thankful for their entertaining performances and lively personalities! 

 

See you, again, next year at Royally Flushed Casino Night! 

 

Royally Flushed Casino Night Sponsors: 

 

100 DAYS UNTIL

THE 134^th SAINT PAUL WINTER CARNIVAL

 ‘Coolest Celebration on Earth™’ Returns to Rice Park

Jan. 23 – Feb. 2, 2020

 

Saint Paul, Minn. (October 15, 2019) — Today marks 100 days until the 134^th Saint Paul Winter Carnival. The next “Coolest Celebration on Earth will be held January 23 – February 2, 2020 in Saint Paul, Minn. Organizers from the Saint Paul Festival & Heritage Foundation, the producers of the Winter Carnival, are pleased to announce location and event updates.

After a year away due to construction, the Saint Paul Winter Carnival will return to its longtime and traditional home of Rice Park (109 W 4^th St). The newly-refurbished park located in the heart of downtown will host an array of activities including the festival’s signature multi-block and single-block ice carving competitions, musical concerts and performances, the ever-popular Ice Bar, as well as merchandise and food vendor sales.

In addition, Rice Park will once again be the culmination point for Winter Carnival’s King Boreas Grand Day (Saturday, Jan. 25) and Vulcan Victory Torchlight (Saturday, Feb. 1) Parades. Last year, these festivities were held a few blocks away at Kellogg Mall Park due the Rice Park’s renovations in progress.

New this year, Winter Carnival festivities will expand across the street on Landmark Plaza and Market

Street between 5^th and 6^th. This location will host several family-fun activities and wintry visuals including snow and ice displays, a kids’ “Snow Box,” and other themed events.

A large heated tent will be situated on Market Street. A great gathering place for Carnival goers, the Winter Carnival Warming House will not only provide a cozy respite from the outdoors, but guests may enjoy assorted tasty signature cocktails, Saint Paul craft beers, games (trivia, bingo, pull tabs), snacks as well as live entertainment from local musicians.

Landmark Center will continue to host Winter Carnival events including the Memorabilia Display (available to explore throughout Carnival); an expanded Jigsaw Puzzle Contest on Saturday, Jan. 25; and Family Day on Saturday, Feb. 1. Landmark Center is also the location of the offices of the Saint Paul Festival and Heritage Foundation, the producers of the Saint Paul Winter Carnival. A collection of Winter Carnival merchandise and souvenirs are available for sale in the office located on fourth floor.

“We are delighted to be coming home to our beloved Rice Park,” says Deb Schaber, president and CEO of the Saint Paul Festival & Heritage Foundation. “Our team is busy coordinating our popular signature events such as the parades, ice sculpture contests, Royal Coronation, and the Vulcan Snow Park. But, we’re also excited to be creating new events to attract a wide variety of potential Winter Carnival goers such as the Winter Carnival Global Market; Drag Queen Bingo; the Hops & Hounds outdoor celebration of pups and craft beer; and a Scotch tasting event.”

The “Coolest Celebration on Earth™” will be held Thursday, Jan. 23 through Sunday, Feb. 2, 2020 in Saint Paul, Minn. Most events will take place in downtown Saint Paul in and around Rice Park. Other Carnival sites will include Landmark Center and the Minnesota State Fairgrounds. Most events are held in the City of Saint Paul and are free and open to the public, unless otherwise noted.

Click the link below to view the PDF version of the press release. 

100 Days until 2020 Press Release

2019 turned out to be another successful year for the Saint Paul Festival and Heritage Foundation. We carried on many traditions while also exploring new opportunities. Continue reading below to see what happened in 2019 for SPFHF! 

Our Winter Carnival could have arguably been one of the “Coolest Celebrations” yet, as Minnesota experienced a polar vortex during carnival. This didn’t stop the celebrations, however, as a new warming house became the source for warm drinks and entertainment. 

It was so cold in Minnesota at Winter Carnival time, that the carnival received a shout out during a short segment on Live with Kelly and Ryan. The beautifully crafted ice sculptures were the backdrop for the many viewers watching. Click the picture below to watch the segment. 

Our new setup at Kellogg Mall Park provided more space for our activities and the Bailey’s warming house. Carnival goers could partake in all the festivities while enjoying a view of a snow covered Mississippi River. 

The Treasure Island Resort & Casino Entertainment Stage was the spot to hear seven nights of live music. Carnival goers kept warm by putting on their dancing shoes and rocking out to some great music! 

The Vulcan Snow Park was the spot for interactive winter fun, complete with thrilling polar plunges, snow sculptures, snow slides, and a Fire Castle featuring mini golf, proving that the Winter Carnival is the place to experience all the fun a Minnesota winter can offer. 

On a warmer note, the execution of Cinco de Mayo West Side was a little different this year, a result of numerous feedback from community members and stakeholders. It was our goal for the new changes and improvements to create an enjoyable experience for all. The event saw 50,000+ attendees and had a social media reach of 900,000+. 

One of the most popular events, the parade, continues to be a highlight of the Cinco de Mayo celebration. Thousands of attendees came out to watch the parade, made up of 80 local cultural and community organizations based on the West Side and surrounding Saint Paul communities. 

2019 also proved successful in our fundraising efforts. Our annual Sip & Savor fundraiser was a great opportunity for attendees to indulge in the best food and beverages the Twin Cities has to offer, all while supporting a great cause! We hosted our Golf Classic in June, where we saw over 100 attendees, 25 sponsors, and even some celebrity appearances. We also introduced our casino night, Royally Flushed, due to popular demand. For all our fundraising events, we relied on generous donations and sponsorship from companies and community members to attend. 

We could not have pulled off our events and fundraisers without a Board of Directors. Thank you to our 2019/2020 Board of Directors for contributing their time and expertise to SPFHF! We are so appreciative of their work. 

Save the date for our future events! We are excited to see what the year 2020 holds for SPFHF! 

Annual Meeting Brochure

The Sal & Francesca LoBaido Volunteer Service Award is presented to individuals who have shown long-term commitment and dedication to the Saint Paul Winter Carnival.   Their volunteerism and achievements have truly contributed to the ongoing success of the Carnival, and they have set an example for others to follow. They have not only given of themselves to the Winter Carnival, but have also made an impact through their volunteerism in their own communities.

Nominate someone exceptional today! Nominations must be received by July 10, 2019 to office@spfhf.org

Hosted by the Star of Boreas

Sal & Francesca LoBaido Volunteer Service Award

Event Coordinator
The Saint Paul Festival and Heritage Foundation (SPFHF), a non-profit membership organization and proud producer of Saint Paul Winter Carnival and Cinco de Mayo – West Side Saint Paul, is seeking a full-time Event Coordinator to coordinate the many special projects associated with large events. Event Coordinators are responsible for production of the Saint Paul Winter Carnival, Cinco de Mayo – West Side Saint Paul, and a host of annual fundraising events from vendor contracting to logistics and on-site management.

More Information 

Membership & Event Intern Position
The Saint Paul Festival and Heritage Foundation is a non-profit membership organization that organizes two major events: Saint Paul Winter Carnival and Cinco de Mayo West Side Saint Paul.  They also organize several smaller events throughout the year including a golf tournament, the annual Spirits of Carnival fundraiser and the annual meeting.  This position is an integral part of the Saint Paul Festival and Heritage Foundation office. The Intern position is an at-will position.

More Information 

Send resume and cover letter to office@spfhf.org  

No phone calls please 

Greetings

Its that magical time in Minnesota where we can be washed out by rain, can see a snowflake in May or a heat wave! I hope you are all enjoying the change of season and looking forward to a great Minnesota summer!

Often times I am asked how can I help, what can I do? And my answer is always the same, “become a foundation member!”

Becoming a member of the Saint Paul Festival and Heritage Foundation and renewing each year is the greatest thing you can do to support the foundation that is the proud producer of the Saint Paul Winter Carnival and Cinco de Mayo West Saint Paul.  

Our organization depends on membership and fundraising dollars to continue to bring the events, energy, and excitement to our community.

Together, through the foundation, we support something that connects our community’s history and future together.  As our community continues to change, we work hard together to evolve and make sure our legacy events reflect this. 

The Winter Carnival will continue to be a special way to share and create history and protect our legacy.  Events like Cinco de Mayo bring our unique expertise to other parts of the community to help them create their own experience.  It is your support and connection to the foundation that makes it possible for all of this to continue.

You and all of our members are also the heart and soul of our organization.  Our volunteer board of directors works tirelessly throughout the year to represent the you, the organization, and why we all know how important it is to celebrate our community. Please consider renewing today or making a gift to the foundation to continue to help support our mission.

I want to thank you and all our members for your support during my last two year as board chair. It has been an amazing journey and we have accomplished so much! We were on the world’s stage during the Super Bowl by making sure our royal winter capital city shined so brightly in ice and snow as only we know how to do best! We continued to have successful Cinco de Mayo 1-day celebrations. We started new events like the Empowering Women and brought back the popular Casino Night and this past year we explored a new park to host Winter Carnival.

I know first-hand that this doesn’t happen without our amazing and dedicated Board of Directors. I want to say a big Thank YOU to all of our board of directors for your time and dedication to our mission. It has been a great honor to work and serve in this way with each of you over the past 2 years as chair.

As many of you have heard me share, my love for the Winter Carnival started as a kid growing up on the East Side of Saint Paul. My parents instilled in me a passion for volunteerism and the rest is history!  

It has been a great honor to serve as the board chair and play a part in how our foundation helps to support the great City of Saint Paul by celebrating the uniqueness our city has to offer and bringing other communities from around Minnesota and the United States to celebrate in old Saint Paul. As my term comes to end, I want to give a heartfelt Thank you for entrusting me to lead this amazing organization.

Jennifer Tamburo
SPFHF Board Chair
June 2017 – May 2019  

 

​​Join us Saturday, May 4th, 2019 for the Cinco de  Mayo – West Side Saint Paul Parade! Exciting, vibrant, lively, and festive are just a few of the ways that people have described this one of a kind extravaganza!

The Cinco de Mayo – West Side Saint Paul Parade is the single highest attended event of Cinco de Mayo – West Side Saint Paul!  Thousands come and experience this family-friendly event, which features floats from local community organizations, event sponsors, and authentic Mexican dancers and performers.   

Registration deadline is April 17th, so make sure you fill out your application today!

Cinco de Mayo Parade Registration 

 

The Saint Paul Festival and Heritage Foundation annually seeks new candidates to fill vacated Board Positions. We are currently looking for candidates who have been supporters of the SPFHF as past and current members, volunteers, community partners, sponsors or past uniform group legend characters. 

The attached document is designed to provide you with information regarding Board obligations, Committee assignments, and application requirements. Please note that submitting information does not guarantee Board placement. 

19-20 Board Member Nomination Process and Expectations

Submit your information by May 10th to Deb Schaber at dschaber@spfhf.org or SPFHF, 429 Landmark Center, 75 West 5th Street, Saint Paul, MN 55102. For questions regarding the role, please contact Amy Mauzy, Vice-Chair 612-812-4439 or amauzy@icloud.com. Incomplete nomination materials submitted will not be considered.

Each year Winter Carnival guests and the Saint Paul community are able to purchase buttons to support the The Saint Paul Festival and Heritage Foundation. Once purchased, buttons can be registered online in order to be entered in a drawing for great prizes donated by SPFHF and other local businesses. Listed below are the lucky 2019 Button Prize Winners! 

2019 Winners

• Melonie Hindahl, Grand Prize: $1,000 Cash
  
• Alex Dascalos, Behind-the-Scenes Tour of Marjorie McNeely Conservatory and Feed the Giraffes at Como Zoo
• Lorene Gilliksen, Ice Palace Artwork ($1,000 value)
• Sue Mitchell, Vulcan Fire Truck Ride for 20
• Michael Kowarsch, Tickets to the St. Paul Saints
• Cindy Schreiber, Tickets to the Science Museum of Minnesota
• Jessica Clayson, One Year Membership to the St. Paul Athletic Club
• Erin Lorentz, $100 Amazon Gift Card
• Luke Severson, $100 L.L. Bean Gift Card
• Jessica Bales, Winter Carnival Apparel
• Helen Hagberg, Winter Carnival Apparel
• Steve Graybill, Winter Carnival Apparel
• Kathy Yanez, Happy Gnome Gift Card

Thank you to all who participated in this exciting Winter Carnival tradition!

The Saint Paul Festival and Heritage Foundation produces a number of family-friendly events throughout Winter Carnival including Kids’ Day, Frozen Family Fun Night, and Family Day. All offered free activities and performances for the St. Paul community to enjoy, and also gave families a chance to visit the historic Landmark Center! Thank you to the vendors, and volunteers who supported the Foundation during these events. 

 

Kids’ Day, presented by ECOLAB

Kids’ Day, hosted by the YMCA, brought in loads of fun exercises and educational materials for families. The two biggest hits of the event were the bouncy house and gaga pit! However, those weren’t the only activities keeping kids moving  as the YMCA provided a full line up of aerobic exercises performed on stage including Latin Hip-Hop. There were various DIY crafting tables around Landmark for guests to explore their creative side like a melting snowman slime project by Kidcreate Studio. Other featured vendors are listed below. 

 

 

 

 

Frozen Family Fun Night, presented by Storm Creek

A polar vortex might have swept through Minnesota, but that didn’t stop Elsa and Anna from the hit Disney movie Frozen from joining us at Frozen Family Fun Night! The snow queen and her sister took pictures, hung out with guests, and even performed Let It Go live! Also featured on stage was the Winter Wonder Magic Show by Brian Richards, and floor performances by Iceformance. Other activities included DIY crafting stations, and the Scouts inflatable archery sets. 

 

Family Day, presented by ECOLAB

This family-friendly event had an emphasis on celebrating the diversity of Saint Paul’s community! The Tour of Nations proved to be ever so popular among Family Day guests. This activity featured six stations, each with a country and cultural activity. Countries included in the Tour of Nations were Ireland, Egypt, South Korea, India, Mexico and France. Once guests completed the activity at each station they were given a stamp and entered in a drawing for a grand prize! The performances on Family Day also highlighted various cultures. On stage that day was Rince na Chroi, Keane Sense of Rhythm, Chung Gong, Michael D’ Fernandez, Anjel “The Little Hurricane”, Ballet Co. Laboratory, Master Kims World Class Tae Kwon Do. Thank you to the vendors who participated in this event as well!

 

 

The 2019 Winter Carnival Puzzle Contest was definitely one to remember! We even opened up a second Adult Division due to the record breaking amount of puzzlers wanting to get in on the action. Thank you to our friends at PuzzleTwist for helping make this such a great event, and also to all the volunteers who lent a helping hand on the day of!

Over 150 teams of 4 people each competed in this years Winter Carnival Jigsaw Puzzle Contests – Talk about some tough competition! 

The contests included two different 500 piece PuzzleTwist jigsaw puzzles, Winter City and Winter Snow Jam.  

                       

Congratulations to all the teams that participated.  Following are the winners from their respective puzzle divisions.

1st Place Adult Division completing the Winter City Puzzle:  Team Nevertheless, We Persist – finished in 35 minutes and 23 seconds

Just like that, it’s the end of the 2019 Saint Paul Winter Carnival Ice Carving Competitions. Each Multi-Block ice carving team brought their frozen masterpieces to life in 48 suspenseful hours, while all Individual Block carving teams created sensational sculptures in under 6 hours. All ice carvings will be on display in Kellogg Mall Park until February 3, 2019. Here’s a list of the winners.

Multi-Block Ice Carving Winners

1st Place: Aquaman Riding a Seahorse

Carved By: Chris Swarbrick & Austin Greenleaf

2nd Place: Three Cold Mice and the Hot Cocoa Machine

Carved By: Terence Reis, Rob Graham, Grody Graham, and Aaron Reis

3rd Place: Pixie Haven

Carved By: Paul Hughes, Deneena Hughes, Shannon Erkenbrack, and John Klug

Individual Block Ice Carving- Professional Winner

1st Place: Headed South

Carved By: Trevor Pearson

Individual Block Ice Carving- Artisan Winner

1st Place: Polar Proposal

Carved By: Jim Zupfer and Nate Stromberg

Metro Transit is providing FREE rides to the 2019 Saint Paul Winter Carnival events and Vulcan Snow Park on January 26, January 27, February 2, and February 3.

Enjoy some time at Kellogg Mall Park—then catch a free bus ride to the Vulcan Snow Park for more Winter Carnival fun!

Kellogg Park – *Bus Stops – Kellogg Blvd & Minnesota St,  5th St & Wabasha St / Cedar St, Central Station

Snow Park *Bus route 3 stops along Como Ave at the south end of the Fairgrounds; the A Line (limited stop rapid transit) stops at Snelling and Como Avenue.*

* Google map of Fairgrounds with bus stops » 

* Plan your trip with the Metro Transit Trip Planner » 

Just click on the icon for the day you want, fill out the form, and submit to download your FREE Metro Transit Ride Pass. 

Kellogg Mall Park will have a plethora of tasty drinks guaranteed to warm you up during your Saint Paul Winter Carnival visit!

The Winter Carnival Ice Bars will feature our signature Winter Carnival mulled wine and various craft breweries such as Stella Artois Cidre, Michelob Golden light, Goose Island IPA, Francis Ford Coppola Diamond Series and Bud Light.

Swing by Baileys Warming House to get your hand on some specialty cocktails made just for Winter Carnival! Available drinks are listed below. 

Hot Chocolate – Baileys Hot Cocoa, Baileys Salted Caramel

Coffee – Baileys Coffee, Baileys Mint Kiss, Baileys Irish Coffee

Hot Cider – Hot Apple Toddy, Mulled Cider