WAPAKONETA — This weekend’s Spring Open House in Wapakoneta helped bring community and local small business owners together with fun activities, shopping, and ice cream.
Two businesses, in particular — Krave Creamery and Casa Chic — played important roles in the weekend’s events.
Having opened just this past October, Krave Creamery offers a variety of waffle cones and original ice cream varieties with names like honey lavender, cookie monster, peanut butter fluff, and orange dream, all of which are made fresh on site. Additionally, they have a menu of hot foods like shredded chicken and pork sandwiches.
Wapakoneta’s connection with the moon, being the hometown of Neil Armstrong, was featured as the Riverside Art Center held a rock painting activity, playing on the idea of moon rocks, at the ice cream shop as part of the festivities. The artist, Jane Fosnaugh, drew on the rocks so the kids could use markers to decorate them. Then the white, flat rocks were hidden around Wapakoneta for people to find. Now, individuals who find the rocks may either keep them or take a photo with the rock, and then share it on the “Wapakoneta (Wapak) Rocks” Facebook page disclosing where they found it and then hiding it again, according to Krave Creamery owner Dena Wireman.
The history of the event, offering fun activities, for kids and adults, is thanks to an initial collaboration involving Casa Chic.
“Our Spring Open House was born out of a collaboration with Rustic Barn Markets,” said Lynne Skaggs, co-owner of Casa Chic. “They do a spring open house vendor show every year at the fairgrounds. Because we all worked so well together, we will send people their direction and then they, in turn, will send people downtown to shop. We were working together before this, so we thought, ‘Why not make it similar to our holiday open house? Why not take it the entire length of the street and everybody participate in the event?’ Through a nonprofit organization called Wapak Antique and Specialty Shops, we are all able to come up with events and share information and advertising dollars to work together. Then we become more than just co-shop owners; we become friends.”
During the event, Skaggs said, she said Casa Chic saw a significant increase in traffic and a great turnout of people over the weekend, despite Friday’s bad weather. The store has been in business for 18 years, but Skaggs said she and her husband only recently became the owners in roughly the past year.
“Our shop is a little bit of everything,” she said. “We’re three full floors. We have vendors, consignment, artists, and our new clothing boutique. Most of the antiques and second-hand items here have gone through the Auglaize Antique Mall across the street. The owner, Jack, is my stepdad and he is an appraiser.
“There’s always something to do in Wapakoneta. Due to the inclement weather on Friday, the First Friday outdoor activities had to be moved to next weekend. So, if you missed this weekend’s events, please come back next weekend.”
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