INNISFAIL – With a massive rainbow-coloured top hat and dress, Bowden’s Azia "Zee" Jamesson gently kneeled for a receptive child to offer joy.
The 17-year-old entrepreneur is a balloon artist and children’s artist who is a natural with creating happiness whether it’s with seniors, children, or the odd grumpy observer.
And on Aug. 24 Jamesson had the perfect venue.
She was tasked to add her joyful talent to the 3rd Annual Innisfail Lantern & Light Festival at Centennial Park on Aug. 24 from 3 to 11 p.m.
It was a task that also brought her plenty of joy.
“It brings everybody in the community together, like any other event. I especially love the fact that I practically get mauled by children,” said Jamesson. “With some events it gets to the point where I literally have to change into a completely different outfit, otherwise I get chased down by small children.
“It's pretty special,” conceded Jamesson of the event at the park nestled near the eastern shoreline of Napoleon Lake. “It gives a little bit of an educational insight from the young. It’s basically like a place for everyone to get together.”
And that was the idea behind the creation of Innisfail’s lantern festival when it was first held in 2021 during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic when the venue was carefully held at the Innisfail & District Historical Village to respect public health guidelines.
It was all about bringing the community together during the toughest of times; to spread creativity, magic and yes, a little bit of joy.
In 2022, with the pandemic subsiding, the festival was moved to Centennial Park with a Lewis Carroll-inspired Through the Looking-Glass theme.
Last year the festival was postponed due to the marriage of lead organizer Dale Dunham but he was proud to bring it back with his life partner Shaun Steen and his dedicated team of committee members and volunteers.
And they were all especially proud to bring it back with an Under the Sea theme.
There was plenty of preparation, including pre-event lantern building workshops, and attractions and activities planned.
There was a full artisan market, lantern decorating, a free barbecue, music and performers.
“Each year we sit down and discuss what we want to do for the next year. We were talking about ideas, and somebody had been talking about Ursula in Disney’s The Little Mermaid,” said Dunham of the wicked sea witch character.
However, there was much more.
“It's not just themed around like The Little Mermaid, but just anything to do with under the sea,” said Dunham, who was asked if there was any coincidence the event being celebrated beside the lake.
“It’s just a great space,” he said. “We've got the park for the kids. We've got the Rotary cookhouse, which is where we hopefully, if the wind dies down, will show The Little Mermaid movie.
“We've already tried to put the screen up twice, and it's come down because the wind's been so strong but it seems to be settling down a bit.”
There were also ominous cloud formations hanging around in the early evening but that all passed.
The show went on, most spectacularly at sundown as scores of lanterns hanging from trees and bushes began to glow brilliantly, and joyfully.
“We're completely bombarded through social media, through newspapers, through everything about all these things going on around the world,” said Dunham earlier at the festival. “So why don't we look into our community and try and find the good things within that?
“ And that's what this has always been about,” he added. “It's always been about bringing light to the community and trying to bring people together.”
