Gift books make shopping easy
November 3, 2011"The Zeitgeist Chronicles" (New Orleans)
November 7, 2011
Organizers are making final preparations for the opening of Thibodeauxville on Nov. 12, and are inviting everyone else to join them. Now in its 19th year, the one-day festival transforms downtown Thibodaux into the center of all things crafts, food, music and friendly competition for the region.
Henry Seal has been making and selling rocking chairs for a living since he was in high school in 1964. Seal attended the first Thibodeauxville when there were only eight participating vendors and has been back every year. Seal is looking forward to an event, now with 180 registered craftsmen and artists, that provides a significant portion of his annual income. “I usually sell 30 cypress and oak chairs on that one day,” he said, to verify what promoters also tag as a starting place for the holiday shopping season.
“Thibodeauxville is an arts, crafts, food and music celebration held on the streets of downtown Thibodaux, but it’s more than that,” Thibodaux Chamber of Commerce President Kathy Benoit said.
In addition to arts, food and music the Cajun Corvette Club hosts a vintage automotive show with approximately 175 vintage cars, trucks and motorcycles on display along Second Street, as well as onto side streets and parking lots, in downtown Thibodaux.
“We have every type of vehicle,” Cajun Corvette club President James Ford said. “People like coming to craft shows and people like coming to car shows. But they don’t necessarily like one or the other by itself. [Thibodeauxville] gives people that come for the car show something more to do. There’s food. There’s live music. People have a lot to see. It is a good time.” Participants for the open car show can register at www.cajuncorvetteclub.com.
A traditional highlight of Thibodeauxville is the 50-yard duck dash. This competition features 1,500 marked rubber ducks dumped in Bayou Lafourche which follow the current to determine a winner.
“Each duck has a number on the bottom that corresponds to a raffle ticket,” Benoit said. “First prize is $1,000 and there are three other cash prizes.”
Raffle tickets are on sale through various businesses, but as festival time approaches, tickets can be purchased either at the Thibodaux Chamber of Commerce office at 318 E. Bayou Road or at several downtown locations on Thibodeauxville day.
For those with a tendency toward fitness, the annual 5K run pits athletes against one another and challenges participants to outdo their personal best as well as their competition. Proceeds from the race benefit the Bayou County Children’s Museum.
The 5K run is broken down into three categories with first, second and third place designation for both runners and walkers. A one-half-mile kids’ run is also offered. Applications for competition may be secured at www.bayoucountrychildrensmuseum.org or www.thibodauxchamber.com.
Benoit said a full food court features 90 different culinary items. Children’s activities include a petting zoo, face painting and sand art. “It’s a tremendous day for the whole family,” she said. “There is no charge [to enter Thibodeauxville].”
This year’s Thibodeauxville event, specifically noted by the Southeast Tourism Association, which covers 13 states, is named a Top 20 event for the month of November. “We are just in disbelief over that,” Benoit said with a smile.
Thibodeauxville is expected to get an added boost because of outside-the-area advertising from the Northshore to Baton Rouge to Lafayette that was secured by a $6,500 grant. “It is more than what we’ve had before,” Benoit said.
The Thibodaux Chamber of Commerce and area businesses sponsor Thibodeauxville with earnings after expenses being placed back into the community for development projects and additional events.
Benoit said after the bills are paid approximately $20,000 remains for those projects. “A portion will go to Habitat for Humanity,” Ford added.
Because there is no admission charge and several routes to enter the festival area, Benoit said it is difficult to know how many people attend Thibodeauxville. However, the Thibodaux Police Department has estimated that the population of the festival area increases by 12,000 people for the one-day event.
Benoit explained that Thibodeauxville began as a project of the North Lafourche Revitalization District. When the NLRD went out of existence three years later, the Thibodaux Chamber of Commerce continued sponsoring what had quickly become a popular attraction. “It was such a good event that no one wanted it to go away,” she said.
“I don’t know how it is for everyone else,” Seal said. “It’s great for me.”
Thibodeauxville opens at 8:30 a.m. and closes at 5 p.m.
