University Museum Invites Families to Santa’s Workshop

Saturday event features a Polar Express theme

Santa's Work/Shop will take place on Saturday, December 5.

Santa’s Work/Shop takes place Saturday (Dec. 5).

OXFORD, Miss. – Families across north Mississippi are invited to join the University of Mississippi Museum for Santa’s Workshop Family Activity Day, coming up Saturday (Dec. 5).

The museum classrooms and lobby will be transformed with fun seasonal activities for the whole family. The drop-in event runs from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.

This year’s Santa’s Workshop will be Polar Express-themed. Families will create mugs for the polar journey, pose at the “sELFie station,” search for hidden museum-going elves and paint a snow globe inspired by winter scenes from the museum’s collection and “The Polar Express.”

Families can ride the “elf mobiles” or walk to the Gertrude C. Ford Center for the Performing Arts to see its annual Gingerbread Village. The elf mobiles will be waiting outside by the “South Pole” for families to take an adventure to the village.

“Santa’s Workshop is always a highlight of the year, and this year we have extended the event by an extra hour to give more families the opportunity to explore different activities and seasonal fun,” said Emily McCauley, the museum’s curator of education. “I always love the opportunity to collaborate with the Ford Center, and bringing children to the magical world of Gingerbread Village adds such a special touch to the morning.”

The museum has included the Gingerbread Village in its activities for the past few years, said Rebecca Phillips, the museum’s communications coordinator.

The Gingerbread Village is on display Dec. 3-19 at the Ford Center.

This Family Day is made possible through an Ignite Ole Miss campaign earlier this year that raised more than $6,000 to offer free family days to the Oxford community for three years.

To keep up with museum events, follow the museum on FacebookTwitter and Instagram or visit its website. Share memories of the family day on social media and use the hashtag #freefamilydays and tag the University of Mississippi Museum.

For more information about Santa’s Workshop Family Activity Day, contact McCauley at esdean@olemiss.edu or 662-915-7073.