Waseca's Great Fall Get-together

Witches descended on the Waseca Art Center on Saturday, Oct. 29, along with a number of Vikings, a walking avocado, Snow White, and any number of other characters, for the Great Fall Get-Together that took place from 6-9 p.m.

Liz O’Brien was responsible for the festively creepy decorations, while her daughter, Ann Johansen provided the mice running for cover upon the stairs as visitors traipsed upward.

The Starfire Event Center brought delicious meatballs, spring rolls and other edible delights, along with a full bar to aid in the annual fundraiser for one of the county's most swinging cultural hubs. One specialty of the evening was a 'witch's brew,' a combination of vodka, lemonade and Gionelli blue Curacao, an orange flavored liquor. Lauren Kolodziej and Mindy Jimenez poured drinks steadily all evening, and, according to Jimenez, at one point had to go back to the Event Center to restock supplies for the event.

Holly Grundlach of Minnesconsinite Cheeseboards provided a smorgasbord of cheeses, crackers, fruits, crudites, Minnesota raised honey, chocolate truffles and cookies. The array was dazzling, and the line was long, although no one seemed to mind, as it was just another opportunity to mingle and enjoy the party. 

Providing entertainment for the evening was the New Ulm native Crista Bohlmann, whose eclectic collection of rock, folk, bluegrass, and country tunes attested to the diversity of her talent. Bolhmann says she's really a violin player, having studied it since she was three, but she also took up guitar in junior high, and, somewhere along the line, also ukulele. Bohlmann sang wonderfully to her guitar playing, and it was fun to watch and listen to her switch it up, including some phenomenal fiddle-style playing. When she's not performing, Bohlmann teaches Suzuki violin.

In between mingling, snacks, and drinks, revelers could pay $10 to see what they would win with a punch cup. Jenny Fridley, for example, won a T-shirt, and a free pizza and drink from Kwik Trip, which, according to Obrien, was very generous this year in their donations to the event. Mark and Ski Ann Christiansen, dressed up, respectively, as a manager and baseball player, carried around a bucket of corks, which could be purchased for $20 each, and bought the purchaser a surprise bottle of wine, most of which were donated by members of the Waseca Art Center board. There was also a raffle for a $300 Yeti cooler.