A celebration of art and coffee!

Great art, hot coffee, great music and just enough of a breeze to keep the bees away made for a successful Celebrate Art! Celebrate Coffee! event Saturday in Willmar. "The weather couldn't have been better," said Mary Wilkowski, planning committee chairwoman. The festival drew more people and more artists than ever. There were 42 artists in attendance, and all told the organizers they had a very successful day and wanted to come back again, Wilkowski added. Last year's event included 35 artists. The new big kid art tent went over really well and the music groups drew crowds too. A highlight was the Irish mistral singers and, as always, the Willmar Area Symphonic Orchestra, which closed the day on the stage. This year marked the 10th anniversary of the downtown Willmar event.