Put on your best Christmas sweater and dive into the festive spirit this holiday season by watching parades, seeing millions of Christmas lights and visiting with Santa Claus.
From Hopkinsville to Clarksville, many local communities are hosting events to get folks in the holiday spirit.
Oak Grove
Staff of the Oak Grove Community Center, 1705 Thompsonville Lane, Oak Grove, will kick off the holiday season at 6 p.m. Nov. 30 with its inaugural tree lighting ceremony. Melissa Lynch, center director, said there may be a Christmas carol sing-a-long during the ceremony, but the focus will be on the outdoor tree.
Santa Claus will visit the center Dec. 14 to read “The Night Before Christmas” to children. Guests also will enjoy cookies and milk. Santa is visiting the center so Families do not have to travel far for their little ones to tell him what they would like for Christmas, Lynch said.
“Some kids may not be able to go out to the mall and afford to get to see Santa there, so this is a bit more local and easier on everyone,” she said. “This also is Family-friendly, so the whole Family can come out to have a great time and enjoy the holidays. We are just trying to do something different. We [at the center] want to be a part of what’s going on in the community.”
Additionally, the center is hosting an angel tree and food drive to benefit the community. These programs are a way to help the community continue to flourish, Lynch said.
“We want people to feel comfortable coming into the community center,” she said. “We want to have programs for children – especially for those who may not be able to do anything for Christmas. We want to keep Oak Grove alive and the community growing. We want to give people a reason to get out and enjoy the holiday festivities.”
Center volunteers are needed to wrap presents donated to the angel tree. Volunteers also are needed to set up the scene for the tree lighting ceremony. To volunteer with the center, call 270-640-6557.
Hopkinsville
Hopkinsville will host a full day of holiday jubilation Dec. 8 in Historic Downtown Hopkinsville. Families can begin the day at the Christmas Market 10 a.m.-2 p.m. at the Downtown Farmer’s Market on the corner of Ninth and Main streets.
Holly Boggess, Hopkinsville downtown renaissance director, said a wide variety of handcrafted items will be for sale.
“We will have winter produce available as well as Christmas decorations such as live Christmas trees and Christmas garland … wreaths made out of Frasier Fir, homemade baked goods and home processed jams and jellies,” Boggess said.
Children can visit The Polar Express 11 a.m.-1 p.m. at the Woody Winfree Fire-Transportation Museum, 310 East Ninth St., to make crafts and have stories read to them.
Alissa Keller, executive director of the Museums of Historic Hopkinsville-Christian County, said the Salvation Army will serve hot chocolate and hot dogs during this free event.
“Santa will be here and he will be available for people to take photos with him and he will be positioned in one of our antique fire trucks,” Keller said.
After spending time at the museum, Families can attend Read Around the Christmas Tree, 1-3 p.m. at the Hopkinsville-Christian County Public Library, 1101 Bethel St.
“The Grinch is going to be reading a story to the kids. Parents will be able to have their child’s photo taken with the Grinch. After the story, they will all head upstairs to decorate Christmas cookies,” said Elysa Parks, outreach librarian at HCCPL.
This event is sponsored by Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library.
As darkness falls downtown, the Hopkinsville Electric System Christmas Parade will kickoff at 5:15 p.m. The parade will wind down Main Street through downtown. This year’s parade theme is “Songs of Christmas” and Brice Long, country music artist, will serve as the Grand Marshal.
Tab Brockman, Hopkinsville Parks and Recreation Department superintendent, said spectators can expect to see all kinds of floats, some artificial snow and thousands of Christmas lights during the parade.
Following the parade there will be a tree lighting celebration at Founders Square and Little River Park in downtown. Following that, Families are invited to a free 7 p.m. showing of The Polar Express at the Alhambra Theater, 577 South Main St.
Hopkinsville Parks and Recreation is bringing a new kind of winter fun to its community members by hosting “Skating on the Square,” a synthetic ice rink at Founders Square, 198 West Ninth St. Skating on the Square will be open 9 a.m.-9 p.m. Dec. 7, noon-10 p.m. Dec. 8 and 1-9 p.m. Dec. 9. General admission for 90 minutes costs $10 and includes skate rental. For more information, call 270-887-4290.
Clarksville
See “Storybook Christmas” themed floats while watching the 59th Annual Christmas Parade hosted by the City of Clarksville and Montgomery County Government at 5 p.m. Dec. 1 in Historic Downtown Clarksville.
The parade route will begin on 8th Street at Austin Peay State University campus. From there, the parade will proceed to College Street and then University Avenue. The route will circle Public Square and the Historic Courthouse before turning onto Franklin Street and returning to APSU.
While waiting for the parade to begin, Families can attend Spirit Fest, 2-5 p.m. Dec. 1 at First Presbyterian Church, 213 Main St. This free holiday event offers inflatables, craft vendors and displays hosted by nonprofit organizations.
Children also will be able to board “The Polar Express” to take a trip to the North Pole, aka Trinity Episcopal Church, 317 Franklin St. Kris Faust, event organizer, said Santa Claus will be at the North Pole with hot chocolate and cookies for children.
This is the fourth year First Presbyterian Church and Trinity Episcopal have partnered to host this holiday event for the community, Faust said.
“It originated out of the idea of extending hospitality to people who were coming downtown for the parade … coming early to get a good spot, but realizing nothing was open,” Faust said. “We have this beautiful building here, this is our opportunity to open our doors and extend some hospitality to the community.”
During the event, students from local schools will perform Christmas songs on the Downtown Commons stage. There also will be a live Nativity scene.
“I don’t know of anyone else who brings a live camel to downtown Clarksville, but we will have one on the front lawn of Runyon and Runyon Attorneys. There will be cows, sheep and a camel … the Holy Family and a large star also will be part of the scene,” she said.
Food trucks will be on site. Faust said this event has grown over the past few years.
“This is not a Presbyterian festival or an Episcopalian festival, this is a community festival. It’s a jump start on Christmas. We just want everyone to come out and have fun. Don’t miss Spirit Fest,” Faust said.
For more information, including an event map and schedule or events, visit www.spiritfestdowntown.com.
While downtown, Families also can visit the Customs House Museum, 200 South Second St., to see the hundreds of pieces that make up the Christmas Town display. The collection was created by Jimmy and Sue Drye of Clarksville. It was recently donated to the museum by the Drye’s children in honor of their parents.
Melissa Miller, curator of collections at the Customs House Museum, said the collection is displayed on top of three platforms that are 8 feet long and 4 feet wide. It took four people about four hours to assemble, Miller said.
This is the second time the town has been on display at the museum. Miller said it is popular among patrons because a lot of the pieces light up and having moving parts. The model train that chugs through the town also is an audience favorite, she said.
Trains run 10 a.m.-noon Wednesdays and 1-4 p.m. Sundays.
Within the collection are multiple special sets including a village featuring Ebenezer Scrooge from Charles Dickens’ classic, “A Christmas Carol.” Many places, themes and manufacturers are part of the town, Miller said.
“Each piece is so unique, individual and detailed. They may remind guests of a place they visited or a toy they played with as a child,” Miller said. “People of all ages really enjoy our Christmas Town.”
The Christmas town will be on display through Jan. 27, 2019. Admission costs $7 for adults, $5 for seniors and college students with ID, and $3 for youth ages 6-18. The museum will offer its monthly free admission day Dec. 8. The museum is open 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Tuesday-Saturday and 1-5 p.m. Sundays. For more information, call 931-648-5780.
Down the hill from the Customs House Museum at McGregor Park Riverwalk and Museum, 640 North Riverside Drive. Families can take in thousands of twinkling Christmas lights while walking along the Cumberland River as part of Clarksville Parks and Recreation’s Christmas on the Cumberland spectacle.
Guests can enjoy the free light display 5-10 p.m. Sunday-Thursday and 1-11 p.m. Friday and Saturdays through Jan. 1, 2019.
Candice Tillman, Clarksville Parks and Recreation marketing coordinator, said Christmas on the Cumberland is a 20-year Clarksville tradition. Staff begin assembling the display a few months in advance. It takes about 15-25 people to make this event possible, she said.
“We have brand new colors for the trees this year, so it will be different for the first time in four years,” Tillman said.
Family-friendly activities will be offered at the park 6-8 p.m. Dec. 8 and 15. Activities include holiday crafts and performances by local school and church choirs and dance groups, Tillman said.
On the other side of town, Families can drive through more than one mile of Christmas lights at Clarksville Speedway, 1600 Needmore Road.
William Scogin, Clarksville Speedway owner, said this is the sixth year the speedway has hosted this event. It features more than two million lights and Christmas tunes. It takes about 30 minutes to travel through the display.
“Everybody likes Christmas lights, so we wanted to bring that to the Clarksville Speedway,” Scogin said. “It’s the coolest thing in town, so come on down and check it out. From time you come onto the racetrack from the time you leave, you’re going to see Christmas lights every second. There are lights everywhere.”
The light show open for the season Nov. 22 and close Dec. 31. It will be open dark until 9:30 p.m. or last car Sunday-Thursday and dark until 10:30 p.m. or last car Fridays and Saturdays.
Admission costs $25 per vehicle. Service members with ID receive $2 discount per vehicle. For more information, visit www.clarksvillespeedway.com.
Families also can enjoy outdoor recreation at the Downtown Commons Winter Ice Rink, 215 Legion St. The rink will be open 5-10 p.m. Thursdays and Fridays, 11 a.m.-10 p.m. Saturdays and 2-10 p.m. Sundays Nov. 23-Jan. 21. Tickets cost $12 for adults and $10 for youth younger than 12. Admission includes up to two hours of time on the ice and skate rental. For more information, visit www.downtowncommons.org/features/ice-rink.