MANKATO — When Rose Craft Shows owner Ryan Cahill first started in the business a few years ago, he knew he wanted to give back to the communities he hosted events in.
That tradition continued this weekend when he debuted the Holiday Craft and Gift Show in Mankato.
“It seems like a lot of events come into the community and do their events, then they don’t necessarily do much for the local community, so a number of shows, we’ve raised money for charity,” he said.
Cahill chose Echo Food Shelf to give 20% of this weekend’s ticket proceeds to.
While he doesn’t know the total amount yet, he said he will likely donate between $500 to $1,000.
The Holiday Craft and Gift Show continues Sunday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m .at the event center at 1 Civic Center Plaza. Tickets are $3.
Over the years, Cahill, based out of Plymouth, has donated between $4,000 to $5,000 to charities in cities across the state.
Additionally, Cahill likes to gift early attendees with roses purchased from local flower shops, in this case Becky’s Floral and Gift Shoppe.
“I think it’s important to support the local community and just to say thank you,” Cahill said.
Holiday music echoed through the Mayo Clinic Health System Event Center Saturday as shoppers eyed handmade gifts such as woodwork, jewelry, home decor and more.
About 70 vendors greeted area customers.
Married couple Katrina and Dustyn Marks from Austin own their shop Dustyn Does, which sells such items as custom engraved coins, bullet necklaces and keychains and more.
The couple have been selling their crafts together for about a year; Katrina said if they see something they like, their minds start to think about how they can make it.
“And so it becomes like a puzzle,” she said.
“I’ve been crafting different things for probably about 10 years now. I like to give them as gifts, because then they’re personalized and you can think about what does that person like and so, that’s how it started for me. His hobby is (he) likes to make tools and work with metal.”
The couple also said it’s important to shop small.
“Handmade things are much more durable and they come with lots of love and thought that goes into it,” Katrina said.
Local mom and daughter duo Kerri Morrow and Melody Bungert said they enjoy shopping small and going to craft fairs together.
“I love the holidays, and I like supporting small businesses, so this is a great opportunity to kind of do both of those things all in one, and I love spending time with my mom,” Bungert said.
“Just a fun little outing for us,” Morrow added.