Winter Carnival schedule packed with fun 

The 2025 edition of the Kahnawake Youth Center (KYC)’s Winter Carnival gets underway Monday, kicking off two weeks full of indoor and outdoor activities for the whole family.

“We do the Winter Carnival every year to bring families and the community together and enjoy the great outdoors, whether it's snowing, or the sun is out,” said Cheyanne McComber, who is the community and family events coordinator for KYC along with Karlijn Kronenberg.

Some new events have been added to this year’s schedule. For those who like playing outdoor sports - and who may have missed the boat on broomball signups. Those who are a part of an organization in town can sign up a team for organizational soccer baseball, run in collaboration with Tewatohnhi’saktha, which will be held Wednesday, February 5, from 3:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. at the Hospital ballfield.

For the indoor activity enthusiasts, a new activity this year is the puzzle tournament held at the Youth Center on Tuesday, February 4, starting at 6 p.m.

Participants will be divided into three categories: individuals, pairs, and teams of three or more. Everyone will have two hours to complete a 500-piece puzzle.

“To me, that’s super exciting, because it's not something that is offered quite often,” said McComber.

Many of the events for the carnival have limited space and require signups in advance – including the aforementioned soccer baseball and puzzle events. Signups are done through the Amilia website and app. On Amilia, one can see how many spots are left, registration criteria, and event details.

“You can even call us if you don't know how to use our Amilia, we'll help you sign up,” said McComber.

She encouraged interested community members to check if events needed signups in advance - and show up early to those that don’t, because space may be limited for those as well. For example, the grocery and toy bingo last year overflowed from the gymnasium due to demand.

Some old favourites are back this year as well. That includes the classic carnival closer, the Polar Plunge. Brave participants can pick up a pledge sheet from the Youth Center and raise money for their plunge, which will go towards the Travel and Exchange program. This year, the Plunge will be happening earlier in the day, at 12:15 p.m. on Friday, February 7.

Some of the events will be back with a twist. A new addition from last year, the first edition of the night market, was a huge success according to McComber, so much so that they are expanding it this year and combining it with the winter formal elementary school dance – which now becomes the family dance this year.

“The night market was awesome last year, because we had every age demographic there,” said McComber. “We had fire pits, we had people selling their crafts, we had community members selling food. It was really a nice atmosphere. You had to be there to feel how nice it was.”

The joint event will be held on Friday, January 31, starting at 5 p.m. outside the Kahnawake Sports Complex. There will also be family skating inside the Sports Complex from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. that day.

The outdoor event will also feature K1037 serving as DJ for the night.

“I think it sounds fun. We can accommodate more people like this as well. Why not have fun and come dance with your parents?” said McComber. “And guess what, you'll keep warm by dancing. So, if you’re checking out a booth and you hear your favorite song, just start dancing and warm yourself up.”

Speaking of cold, McComber said that if the weather is too inclement, some of the events may be moved indoors - but only if the field or outdoor rink can’t be used, not if it is too cold.

“We don’t want to cancel anything. We want to provide fun every day in whatever capacity we can,” said McComber.

The full schedule of activities for this year’s Winter Carnival is available on KYC’s Facebook page.

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