This past week I discovered a wonderful event which I’ve already decided will become the kick-off activity of the holiday season for me every year from now on. One of the pluses of moving to a new community is being exposed to its unique festivals,celebrations and institutions. Here in the Rogue Valley (and, specifically, the city of Medford) is a lovely performing arts center, the Craterian Ginger Rogers Theater. Opened in 1924 as a venue for both live traveling performances and popular movies of the day, it was transformed in 1997 into a community performing arts center after languishing unused for several years. The famed dancer/actress purchased a ranch here on the Rogue River in the ’40s and was a quiet but active member of  the community until her death in 1995. She supported fundraisers focused on the remodeling of the old Craterian; hence, the addition of her name to the site. The theater hosts an ecletic assortment of national concert, dance and theatrical tours each year in addition to several local and regional dance and musical entities and is operated by a non-profit organization. For several years now, the largest fundraiser for that group has been the annual Gingerbread Jubilee. On Tuesday I trekked downtown, plunked down a measly three dollars and spent the next 90 minutes thoroughly amazed and impressed with the ingenuity, skill and artistry of those who submitted the 48 entries on display. There were a few different divisions – student, adult, individual and group — and very few rules. The only one that really seemed to matter is that everything used in each creation had to be an edible item (not just gingerbread). The more I looked, the more I spotted some really amazing adaptations of cereal, various kinds of pasta and even dried seaweed as building materials! This being the 150th anniversary of Oregon’s statehood, several displays depicted well-known historical sites and events from the past. There was a lovely recreation of the Chateau at the Oregon Caves National Monument, a 1934 rustic wooden hotel; a covered bridge complete with goldfish-cracker residents “swimming” in the “river” below; a log homestead with a rock-candy chimney. Most impressive for its intricate detailing inside and out as well as the age of its creators was a beautiful rendition of a one-room schoolhouse. Tiny fondant-molded coats, hats, gloves and lunch boxes cluttered the cloak room; desks contained books and were covered with crayons, calculators and papers with homework problems sketched on them; outside, a lizard sunned itself on a bench next to a basketball hoop. All of this was created by a team of students aged 5 through 11 who attend a charter school in the area. Other entrants were inspired by the holiday season (creche scenes and the North Pole), the environment (“Save the Penguins” and salmon streams) and popular culture. Where the Wild Things Are was represented by Max’s room growing out of one of the pages in the book, with some of the wild things — perfect replicas — romping nearby. One of my favorites was the house from the movie Up invented by a 17-year-old girl who created the three-story structure in amazing detail inside and out (rabbit-eared T.V. and gramophone included). Garnering “Best of Show” was Saurusville, designed by a woman who has entered the Jubilee several years in a row and is truly an artist. Inspired by her 5-year-old son’s infatuation with the PBS kids’ show Dinosaur Train (for which she and he created a separate entry depicting the train winding its way through a tunnel and around some mountains on its way to the town), she dreamed up an entire community including a four-story hotel, cinema, bakery shop and apartments with dinosaur denizens included. How does anyone, let alone someone with a 5-year-old, have the time and patience to create such wonders?! I left the exhibit utterly charmed and amazed. My past meager attempts at very simple gingerbread houses taught me just enough to realize that the individuals who made these elaborate creations possess an unbelievable amount of imagination, stamina and patience (and steady hands!). They even inspired me to consider taking another stab at a gingerbread creation in the future. In the meantime, though, I will be more than happy to look forward to attending this annual event to begin each Christmas season with healthy doses of whimsy, wonder and awe. — Patty Vanikiotis, proofreader