While a few days this past weekend was bitterly cold it didn't stop people in southern Manitoba from taking in a live version of the retelling of Jesus' birth.
After a two-year hiatus, the live nativity called 'From Everywhere to Bethlehem,' put on by Winkler's EMMC, was again set up in Winkler Park. The Christmas event drew 2,168 people throughout the weekend.
At one point, on Sunday evening, the line-up grew to an hour long, reaching the waterslide tower.
"The Bethlehem Event was a great success, seeing we had not done it for the last three years," says Abe Penner, the event's organizer. "As new organizers, we were very happy with the weekend. We would like to thank everyone for coming out and making it a huge success."
The event was open and free for all, however, participants were encouraged to bring canned food to help at the local food hampers. With everyone's contributions, 2148 lbs of food were donated.
"We'd like to thank all the actors, setup people, clean up people, food people, businesses and people for their donations and EMMChurch for their support."