Find Waldo In Stillwater!
Local Businesses Join Forces in Beloved Annual Event Celebrating “Shop Local”
Where’s Waldo? In Stillwater, Oklahoma, of course! Celebrating its twelfth anniversary in July 2024, Find Waldo Local has become a beloved summertime event in communities nationwide. This year, Candlewick Press and the American Booksellers Association are again teaming up with 310 independent bookstores nationwide, including Bliss Books & Bindery, for some hide-and-seek fun designed to encourage residents to patronize their local businesses. There is no charge to participate, and the hunt lasts for the entire month of July.
Families love joining the scavenger hunt to find the iconic children’s book character, with his red-and-white-striped shirt and black glasses, hidden in twenty-five local businesses, including Denis the Jeweler, Boomerang, Stonecloud Patio & Taproom, District Bikes, Blue Spruce and 20 additional businesses. Find Waldo Local is a wonderful way to support the Shop Local movement by increasing foot traffic to a variety of stores.
"Where’s Waldo raises awareness within the community of all the great shopping and business opportunities that Stillwater offers. Kids and adults alike enjoy the adventure of exploring the town and discovering little treasures everywhere. This event has helped to further build the community and demonstrates the variety of choices local shoppers have. Shopping locally keeps our community prosperous!” --Roger Mullins, Manager, Bliss Books & Bindery.
To join in the fun, people can simply pick up a “Find Waldo Local in Stillwater!” stamp card at any of the participating stores. With each miniature Waldo they spot, searchers get their card stamped or signed by the participating shop. Eagle-eyed hunters can also look for Waldo’s special 2024 gold medal hidden in Bliss Books & Bindery! Collecting store stamps or signatures at twenty or more businesses will entitle diligent seekers entry into a grand-prize drawing for Waldo books and other prizes. All participants are welcome to attend the celebration party at Bliss Books & Bindery on Saturday, July 27th.
Martin Handford’s collections of crowd scenes took the world by storm in the late 1980s, and since then the books have held a cherished place on bookstore shelves, in family libraries, and in classrooms around the world. More than 80 million Waldo books have been sold worldwide, and they’ve been translated into over thirty languages.
For more information about hunting for Waldo in Stillwater, call Bliss Books & Bindery at 405-888-8903. To see a map of all participating stores in the country, visit www.indiebound.org.
