Residents carve out time for ice sculpture
There’s only one place you can see trains, angels, rockets, penguins and flamingos all in one place this weekend: the Carved in Ice festival at Diamond Park in Butler.
The Butler AM Rotary fundraiser kicked off Friday night, boasting live ice carving, food, drinks, music and more.
While chomping cheese fries or sipping coffee, people of all ages gawked at the large blocks of ice on display and the artists who brought them to life by crafting them into sculptures.
Jared McAlister, of DiMartino Ice Company in Jeannette, created a display of stacked hearts as attendees looked on.
“This is six blocks of ice,” he said. “It’s for entertainment, so it takes longer. This one took about two-and-a-half hours.”
McAlister said most ice sculptors learn the craft in culinary school and make a profession of it by providing packaged ice in the warmer months and performing when it gets cold.
“This always has a good turn out,” he said of the Butler event. “There’s a little more going on here than at our other events.”
Dena Martinez, chairman for the Rotary event, said the goal of Carved in Ice is two-fold: to offer free community entertainment and support to local charities.
“So many businesses stepped up to support us,” she said. “This is our biggest fundraiser for AM Rotary charities, and it allows us to give back to the community.”
She said festival-goers will have even more to look forward to during Saturday — including a chili cook-off, hot dog eating contest, face painting and more.
Many attendees in Diamond Park Friday thought it was worth braving the cold for the event. The Feathers family jammed out to the music as soon as they arrived and marveled at a Cadillac carving.
“We were looking for something fun to get us out of the house,” said Nicole Feathers. “I like getting to watch (my kids) get excited about sculptures that are of interest to them.”
Her son Landon, 3, said he enjoyed watching the creation of the train sculpture.
“It’s my favorite,” he said.
Jamie Feathers said they were looking forward to the fire twirling performance by Dragonfly Balloons this year, as well as the live carvings.
“It’s amazing to see the talent it takes to make something like that,” he said.
Marianne Snyder, of Butler, came to the festival with her husband Rue, and said they looked forward to attending the event despite the low temperatures.
“It’s nice Butler is providing something fun to do on a Friday night,” she said.
Carved in Ice picks up Saturday starting at 11 a.m.
