Fire and Ice Festival | January First Fridays
Friday, January 5, 2024, noon – 8 p.m.
The annual spectacle of fire and ice returns to Goshen with even more delights. Professional carvers transform 300 lb ice blocks into time-bound art while fire dancers light the night sky. If it gets too cold, downtown stores are ready to warm you up with delicious drinks and post holiday shopping! Children should come royally dressed to sit on the ice throne or sleigh and have their picture taken! And don’t leave without roasting a free marshmallow over the toasty outdoor fires.
Ice sleigh carving, sponsored by the City of Goshen, takes place at the Goshen Police Department (111 East Jefferson) and carving of the ice throne—sponsored by Miller Poultry—takes place on the corner of West Washington and Main Streets, near the community Christmas tree. Goshen Health sponsors the carving of an ice cornhole set on the corner of East Washington and Main Streets; the Elkhart County Convention & Visitors Bureau sponsors carving on the corners of East Washington and Main, by the downtown fountain; the Economic Improvement District sponsors carving at the downtown police booth; Eyedart Creative Studio sponsors carving at The Table @ 108 (108 North Main); Legacy Home Furniture sponsors carving at 111 East Washington; Robert Adam Construction sponsors carving at ADEC (114 East Lincoln); Green Oaks of Goshen sponsors carving at Woldruff’s Footwear (129 South Main); the Community Foundation of Elkhart County sponsors carving at Ignition Music Garage (120 East Washington); Friends of The Pumpkinvine sponsors carving at I M SHE (121 South Main); and Goshen College sponsors carving at The Goshen News (114 South Main).
Entertainment
The Fire and Ice Festival has something delightful for everyone; marvelous works of art, activities and entertainment for the young and young-at-heart, great food and drink options, and specials and promotions with participating downtown businesses and merchants.
Organizations and businesses sponsoring carvers, on-site, at their locations include:
- Biebs and Ash (133 South Main)
- Constant Spring (219 South Main)
- Goshen Theater (216 South Main)
- Cressy & Everett Real Estate (210-A South Main)
- Electric Brew (118 East Washington)
- First State Bank (201 North Main)
- Interra Credit Union (300 West Lincoln)
- JoJo’s Pretzels (136 South Main)
- The Nut Shoppe (204 South Main)
- Venturi (123 East Lincoln)
- Common Spirits (111 East Lincoln)
- Elephant Bar (227 South Main)
- Fables Books (215 South Main)
- Goshen Brewing Company (315 West Washington)
- Goshen Chamber of Commerce (232 South Main)
- Menno Travel (203 South Main)
- The Exchange (212 South Main #1)
- Maple City Market (314 South Main)
- Kruggel Lawton (220 South Main #150)
Public ice carving for the Fire and Ice Festival starts at noon and event festivities are from 5 – 8 p.m. Join us as we usher in 2024 with a First Fridays bonanza of family, friends, and fun!
Fire and Ice Festival Map
We’ll see you downtown! Click on the legend icon at the top left-hand side of the map for the full list.
Food and Beverage
Participating downtown stores bring the heat during the one-day festival with food and beverage specials. Stop in an warm up with a hot meal or sweet treat before heading back out to see the ice sculptures!
Kids Activities
Kids! First Fridays invites you to come royally dressed to sit on the ice throne sponsored by Miller Poultry on the corner of West Washington and Main Streets!
An ice sleigh carving, sponsored by the City of Goshen, takes place at the Goshen Police Department (111 East Jefferson).
And you can roast a free marshmallow over the toasty outdoor fires.
Downtown Business Promotions
Shopping locally in December pays big dividends in January! Grab your December bonus dollars and enjoy shopping at participating downtown merchant locations.
Thank you Fire and Ice Festival Sponsors!
Downtown Goshen Inc. and First Fridays are here to celebrate Goshen and the wonderful arts and community that we share. That means that if you attend an event in downtown Goshen, your image might appear in a future celebration of that event or a promotion of one of our future events. This is because our community is the most essential part of First Fridays! We pride ourselves in being an organization that celebrates everyone and will do our best to present you in the best way possible. We are incredibly proud and happy that you enjoy our events and that you are part of our fantastic community! Thank you for joining us at First Fridays and having fun in downtown Goshen.
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