Madison Shumway
Staff Writer
Strings of lights twinkle and holiday music blares every year in Old Town in a celebration of the Christmas season.
Hundreds of community members and families will brave the cold the day after Thanksgiving to join in on the festive fun.
This year, Old Town will host two days of events, with the Night Lights Parade Nov. 25 and a candy cane hunt Nov. 26.
“It has a quaint charm about it,” said longtime Pocatello community member Pamela Fleischmann. “It’s a time where family and friends gather together on the streets of Old Town, sipping on hot cocoa and sharing their hopes for a peaceful and joyful holiday.”
The Night Lights Parade, an annual tradition, features a line of floats crafted by local organizations and businesses.
Community members cluster along downtown sidewalks in winter hats and ski coats, watching as gift-wrapped presents and reindeer drive by.
People alongside the floats sometimes throw candy or distribute fliers, and at the end, Santa waves to the crowd.
“I go with my friends … to experience the fuzzy Christmas spirit that you really can’t find anywhere else,” said Pocatello native Parker Wilkinson.
This year’s parade theme is “Expedition: Old Town Christmas.” Spectators might expect polar explorations and Arctic animals.
ISU Credit Union will distribute goodies along the route, including 1,000 children’s winter hats.
The parade starts at 6:30 p.m. Friday, Nov. 25 with activities along the route beginning at 6 p.m.
Floats will line up at the Lewis Street intersection, come down Center Street and through the underpass, turn left on Union Pacific and continue down the length of Main Street.
Community members and businesses can still enter a float into the parade.
The registration fee is $50 by Nov. 18 and $60 by Nov. 23.
Prizes for best overall entry, mayor’s choice, best use of lights, most traditional, best non-profit, best commercial, most creative, the Civitan Award and children’s choice will be awarded before the parade.
“I absolutely love the Night Lights parade,” said Fleischmann, a government teacher at Highland High School. “It’s a great community event that kicks off the Christmas season.”
The day after the parade, downtown businesses will participate in a candy cane hunt from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Part of Small Business Saturday, a day set aside last month by Mayor Brian Blad to support local entrepreneurship, the hunt features candy canes hidden in Old Town shops.
Each cane has an assigned value of up to $100.
Businesses with the candy cane prizes include Molinelli’s Jewelers, Citizens Community Bank, Portneuf Valley Brewing, East Idaho Home Interiors, Villano’s Italian Restaurant, Main Street Music, Mr. Vaughn’s Emporium, Elwen Cottage, Great Harvest Bread Company, Vain & Vintage, Found Downtown, The Grape Van Gogh and Snake River Fly.
During this time, the Old Town Polar Express Trolley will make 15-minute trips from the pavilion on Main Street. The ride involves Christmas storytelling with milk and cookies and visits with Santa.
Everyone in the community is invited to track down candy canes and watch the parade.
“I love how intimate this event is,” said resident Arielle Guyette, an actress in the Palace Playhouse’s Christmas show. “The emotional feeling everyone gets while we are all together in peace to enjoy pretty lights and laughter… I live for that.”
