The Mitchell Park Youth and Teen Center will host the first annual Mitchell Park Winter Festival this coming Wednesday, Jan. 10. The festival will be held at the Mitchell Park Recreation center on Middlefield road, and participants can expect free food, good music, and games with prizes.

Recreation Supervisor Kim Parker says that the Festival is a way to shine some light on new changes around the Recreation Center.

"Our computer lab is now open, and there have been some changes to the Drop [the teen center]," Parker said. "Hopefully this will draw some attention on how to become a member of the Drop."

There will be a variety of games at the festival, including carnival-type games, tournament style games, such as pool and basketball, and computer games in the new lab. The lab opened three weeks ago and is fully equipped with printers. Parker wants to establish that the Recreation Center is "not just a place for middle school students." The festival will run from 3-5 pm and is completely free.

Just a week after the Winter Festival the Rec. Center will be hosting another event, also the first of its kind. "Cram Session" will take place on Tuesday, Jan. 16 and Wednesday, Jan. 17, and is open to all high school students. Cram Session is set up exclusively for studying for first semester finals, and will be open until 10 p.m. Like the festival, the Cram Session will provide free food, along with group study tables, and access to the computer lab.