On a cold winter's night, the Deloraine community and surrounds came together to enjoy food, fire, mulled wine and festivities.
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Gates to the Deloraine WinterFire Festival opened at 4pm on Saturday, and with a family friendly atmosphere, it was no surprise the event sold out.
However, event coordinator Kylie Rogerson said this year was the first time the event had sold out in its six-year stint.
"Myself and Arts Deloraine are really just overwhelmed with the turnout of tonight and how many bought tickets," she said.
Tickets sold out on the Friday evening, with the event capped at 900 to allow for another 100 volunteers and event organisers to also attend.
"Just about everyone has turned up tonight which has been fantastic," Ms Rogerson said.
The event had plenty of drawcards including the the Meander Men, Taiko Drummers, and Flaming Piano.
"I think it's a sense of community that people want to feel," Ms Rogerson said.
"The winter months, everyone is disconnected from each other ... where events like this really do bring people together."
However, the biggest and most impressive drawcard was at the end of the evening.
"I think the finale of the night is going to be the lighting of the bonfire," Ms Rogerson said.
"We do a different theme every year. This year we wanted to do the phoenix [burning] which signifies the end of one era, and the beginning of a new one so that we can rise from the ashes and have new beginnings again."
Piper Max Goodenough, of Deloraine, said it felt great to be the piper for the evening, leading people to the bonfire as it was being lit.
"It's a fantastic event. It's just a local community thing," he said.
"After the lockdown, I think it's been so great for everyone to get together, and come out and get involved with community again."
The piper may be spied at future WinterFire events, as he shared he would perform at the event again if asked back.
Looking to the future of the event, Ms Rogerson said all was bright after the 2021 evening.
"Honestly, I think by looking at the support from the community from the turnout tonight, there is no doubt we will continue to go ahead for the future," she said.
"We might try and look at making it a bit bigger next year to accommodate for more people."