"We want to offer opportunities to share our cultural heritage with the community," said Elise Bullington, event chairperson for Lancaster Liederkranz's Christkindlmarkt. "We do that through our fests. A big thing in Germany are these Christmas markets. They are an opportunity to bring people together, for local artisans to showcase their talents and for wonderful family fun."

Christkindlmarkt will be held on the Liederkranz grounds, 722 S. Chiques Road, Manheim, on Sunday, Dec. 12, from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.

"We will have more than 30 different vendors selling anything from candies to traditional German nutcrackers, ornaments, Moravian stars," Bullington stated. "We'll have performances by our singing groups, including the mixed chorus (and) the Hobby Chor, which is our men's singing group, plus caroling, and we have a gentleman who plays the accordion and he roams around playing Christmas music."

Food is a highlight of the festival, with options offered both outside and indoors. "Inside, we'll have sit-down dining," Bullington explained. "It's more formal and will feature our German platters." Inside dining choices include a half-chicken, pork schnitzel, Schweinshaxe (German pork knuckle), and goulasch. All are served over spaetzle and include a choice of red cabbage or Gurkensalat (cucumber salad) plus apple strudel.

"Outside, we'll have three kinds of soup - ham and bean, potato, and kielbasa and sauerkraut - as well as jumbo hot dogs, kielbasa, bratwurst sandwiches, and currywurst boats," she said.

Homemade pierogies are a popular food choice, she noted, adding that flavors vary each year, but will include potato and cheese, potato and bratwurst, potato and roast garlic, pork and sauerkraut, and apple cinnamon. New flavors this year will be pumpkin pie and Hungarian hot wax, a type of hot pepper. "All the pierogies are made in-house with love by our 'pierogie posse,'" Bullington explained, noting that members meet weekly for several weeks leading up to the event to prepare the pierogies. "And of course, we'll have beer and glühwein, which is a German spiced mulled wine, along with hot chocolate for the kids."

Santa will be on-site for pictures, and a variety of children's activities will be featured inside downstairs. "We'll have a kids' craft area set up, where they can make birdseed ornaments and put them on our Christmas tree outside," Bullington remarked. "We'll also have a face painter there. It's a good opportunity to come inside and get out of the cold."

Admission to the Christkindlmarkt is free. On-site parking will be available at the event for a fee, and off-site parking will also be offered, with a shuttle bus to the site.

"This is a fun day for everyone," Bullington stated. "A lot of our fests are more adult-oriented, but this is something to get kids involved and bring the whole family to. It's a great way to celebrate the holidays."

For more information about the Christkindlmarkt, visit http://www.lancasterliederkranz.com.