Holiday events planned throughout communities valley-wide
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MISSION VALLEY — Communities are celebrating the holiday season with parades, festivals and other activities in Polson, Ronan and St. Ignatius in the next few weeks leading up to Christmas.
Polson
Polson’s annual Parade of Lights, a longtime favorite community event, takes place on Friday, December 5, starting at 6 p.m. with a mix of festive floats created by individuals, organizations and businesses. In addition to the parade, the event will include food vendors, late-night shopping and an appearance by Santa Claus, according to the Polson Chamber of Commerce. Helping Hands of Mission Valley will be present accepting donations through the organization’s green bucket campaign.
Entry fee is $25. Sign up is still open online at polsonchamber.com/events. Parade lineup begins at 5 p.m. at the parade lineup location on 9th Avenue West south of Cherry Valley Elementary School. Enter from 2nd Street West. Entries are required to have walkers at each front wheel for safety.
The parade will take 9th Avenue West, turn left onto Main Street and continue to 3rd Avenue, then turn onto 1st Street West where it will disperse. Prizes will be awarded for Best of Parade, Most Humorous, Best Lights and Most Creative.
For more information, call the chamber at 406-883-5969.
St. Ignatius
The annual St. Ignatius Christmas Festival will take place on Saturday, Dec. 6, jam packed with fun activities from 5 to 8 p.m. at Good Old Days Park, said Darren Orr, a member of the St. Ignatius Chamber of Commerce.
The event will feature free chili, Sugar Shack with sweet treats, a couple live reindeer – “a big hit with the kids” - and raffles for such prizes as a television and gift cards to local businesses. There also will be a Christmas market with local vendors with such items for sale as jewelry, homemade Christmas items and gift items to provide for some Christmas shopping and supporting local vendors, Orr said. Vendors who want a booth should contact Orr to reserve a spot.
The tree lighting ceremony will begin at 5:30 p.m., followed by free pictures with Santa sponsored by Valley Banks. The parade of lights will follow the tree lighting at 6 p.m., with parade participants to line up at Good Old Days Park. The parade will go through town, mostly on Main Street. No pre-registration is needed for parade entries. Orr noted that the parade is very popular and gets bigger every year.
There also will be a caroling trailer - everyone is welcome to join.
“The chamber started the festival a couple years ago to bring something new for residents,” Orr said. “The turnout has been amazing.”
Ronan
During Holiday Treasures, residents can collect tickets while shopping at Ronan businesses for a chance to win prize packages, said Dana Grant, coordinator for the longtime shopping local tradition. Until December 19, people shopping at participating local businesses will be given tickets that will be entered in drawings for prize packages. Prizes will include a gamut of things as well as “Chamber bucks” they can use like gift cards to purchase something they want.
The winning ticket will be drawn at the Ronan Visitors Center after the Parade of Lights on Friday, December 19. It will be a festive occasion, Grant said, with hot chocolate and goodies and an appearance by Santa and Mrs. Claus.
“People can wander over after the parade,” he said. “It’s a great time to gather, and an opportunity to get prizes.”
As for the Ronan Parade of Lights, it will kick off at 6 p.m. December 19. It’s a highlight of the holiday season for Ronan, noted Whitney Liegakos, parade coordinator. Last year there were about 50 entries, including floats, walking groups, horseback riders and musicians.
“It’s well attended,” she said, with an estimated 400 people usually coming out to watch it.
Anyone can take part in the parade for free. Entries will line up at 5:30 p.m. behind St. Luke Hospital. From there, the parade will proceed east along Main Street, turn north on 1st Avenue SW, then west on Round Butte Road and return to the starting point.
For more information about the parade, call 406- 833-0570 or email ronanchamber@gmail.com.
Other holiday events
For information about other upcoming holidays events in Lake County, see the community calendar online at polsonchamber.com/events.
Giving opportunities
Along with the holiday festivities, there also are opportunities to live generously. Volunteers for Helping Hands of Mission Valley will be manning green buckets at various grocery stores and banks on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays during the holiday season to collect money to fund the many programs supported by the organization.
And Murdoch’s, in conjunction with Helping Hands, will be hosting a Holiday Hands Giving Tree at the store in Polson. People can select a tag and help fulfill a Christmas wish for a local child.
