Boys & Girls Clubs of America Join Cedar Fair for WinterFest and Knott's Merry Farm Celebrations

SANDUSKY, Ohio, Nov. 15, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Cedar Fair Entertainment Company FUN, a leader in regional amusement parks, water parks and active entertainment, has joined Boys & Girls Clubs of America to provide hundreds of club members across the U.S. with a free celebration at the parks' annual holiday events – WinterFest and Knott's Merry Farm – at select park locations in California, the Carolinas, Ohio, Missouri and Virginia. Children will enjoy a night in a magical winter wonderland complete with food, entertainment, rides, and an appearance by Santa Claus and other holiday characters. 2018 marks the third year that Cedar Fair has worked with Boys & Girls Clubs to bring WinterFest to the children it serves.

• California's Great America in Santa Clara hosts its WinterFest Boys & Girls Club event on December 19, and will welcome several hundred children with early park entry, dinner, character visits, and the special job of lighting the park's 70 foot tall Christmas tree. Great America was the first Cedar Fair park to host WinterFest back in 2016, and teamed with its local Boys & Girls Club as a charity partner for the initial event.
• Carowinds, straddling the North and South Carolina state lines in Charlotte, hosts its WinterFest Boys & Girls Club event on December 7, and will provide several hundred children with park entry, dinner, character visits, holiday photo opportunities, and the honor of lighting the park's 70 foot tall Christmas tree.
• Kings Dominion in central Virginia is working with Boys & Girls Clubs of Metro Richmond on a WinterFest event including park entry, dinner, gifts and the chance to light the park's 70 foot tall Christmas tree, on a date to be announced.
• Kings Island in Cincinnati, Ohio is working with the Boys & Girls Clubs of America's Greater Cincinnati, West Chester/Liberty, and Hamilton chapters for a special WinterFest evening on December 17. The park will provide hundreds of children and their families with a WinterFest holiday experience including park entry, dinner, character visits and holiday photo opportunities. A special family will represent the clubs in the evening's International Street and Eiffel Tower lighting ceremony.
• Knott's Berry Farm in Buena Park, California, with the 15 Boys & Girls Clubs in Orange County, hosts its event on the opening day of Knott's Merry Farm, November 16. Several hundred children will participate in a special tree lighting ceremony with the park's 70 foot tall Christmas tree, the PEANUTS characters and Santa Claus himself. Club members will enjoy an evening at Knott's with their families.
• Worlds of Fun in Kansas City, Missouri, will host its local Boys & Girls Club WinterFest event on December 20, as they welcome almost 500 children into the park for a special holiday meal and festive activities, along with honoring a recent scholarship winner during the park's spectacular tree lighting ceremony.

Julie Teer, chief development and public affairs officer at Boys & Girls Clubs of America, said, "We're so grateful to partner with Cedar Fair Entertainment Company again this holiday season. Thanks to their help, Boys & Girls Clubs can continue to help close the opportunity gap that exists for so many kids today, such as providing impactful experiences like WinterFest and Knott's Merry Farm to youth who need us most."

Lee Alexakos, Cedar Fair's vice president of community relations, said, "It is an honor to work with Boys & Girls Clubs of America in bringing the magic of the holidays to children who may not otherwise have the opportunity. Cedar Fair Charities, Inc., our company's charitable giving group, has worked with Boys & Girls Clubs for several years on a number of initiatives to give back to the communities where we live and work; we look forward to continuing our relationship with them to surprise and delight children across the nation."

WinterFest and Knott's Merry Farm are immersive holiday entertainment traditions held select nights November through December at several Cedar Fair amusement parks throughout the U.S. The parks are transformed into magical winter wonderlands featuring millions of lights, enormous decorated trees, live entertainment, ice skating, falling snow, festive food and beverages, dozens of rides operating, and visits with Santa Claus, special holiday characters, and the PEANUTS gang. The season ends with a spectacular New Year's Eve party with fun for the entire family.

Cedar Fair Entertainment Company is a publicly traded partnership headquartered in Sandusky, Ohio, and one of the largest regional amusement-resort operators in the world. The Company owns and operates 11 amusement parks, two outdoor water parks, one indoor water park and four hotels. It also operates an additional theme park under a management contract. Its parks are located in California, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Virginia and Toronto, Ontario. For more information, see www.cedarfair.com.

Contact: Laurie Tardif, Corporate Communications
419.357.9559  

SOURCE Cedar Fair