Daily Local News (West Chester, PA)
Ringing in an Old Fashioned Christmas
WESTCHESTER » One of the borough’s longest-running traditions returns Friday as the holiday season gets into full swing with the celebration of the 35th annual Old Fashioned Christmas Parade.
The parade, sponsored by MARS Drinks and QVC, is hosted by the Greater West Chester Chamber of Commerce. It will be held Friday, Dec. 5, starting at 7:15 p.m.
Residents and visitors from around the area crowd the borough each year, with the attendance reaching more than 25,000 people in recent years. The tree lighting ceremony will be at the corner of High and Market streets at 6:30 p.m.
On the night of the parade, we want you to share your experience with us. Using #WCxmasparade, tweet your favorite float or what you like most about this annual event, and it will appear in the live blog.
The event has been ranked as one of the “top 10 places to experience the arrival of Santa Claus during the holiday season” according to USA Today.
The parade features a procession of floats as well as high school and college marching bands and concludes with Santa Claus making his annual appearance.
“Our old fa shioned Christmas parade is a West Chester tradition that gets better every year!” said West Chester Mayor Carolyn Comitta. “The dedication and spirit of the organizers and participants as well as our neighbors who line the streets is inspiring. I love the music, the col- ors and the sparkle moving along the backdrop of beautiful historic West Chester. And to top it off, the weather should be perfect!”
QVC officials added that they are also excited about their participation in the annual gala.
“For the second year, QVC will share the magic of the parade with millions of homes during our live broadcast and Christmas Day programming,” says Paul Capelli, Vice President Corporate Communications and Community Affairs at QVC, Inc. “This favorite holiday tradition is a great way to spread cheer both in our local community and with our QVC family across the country.”
QVC Program Host Albany Irvin will provide live commentary for the QVC broadcast. QVC Program Hosts Nancy Hornback and Alberti Popaj will emcee the pre-parade festivities, and Carolyn Gracie and Dan Hughes will join 6abc’s Adam Joseph to emcee the parade starting at 7:15 pm. The parade will also feature QVC Program Hosts Mary Beth Roe, Kerstin Lindquist and Courtney Cason.
Parade attendees can visit QVC’s Holiday Village (located within the Holiday Festival on North High Street) to enjoy free Cheryl’s Cookies while being serenaded by the QVC Singers. There will also be opportunities for parade-goers to share their favorite holiday memories with Program Host Jennifer Coffey to be aired during portions of QVC’s Christmas Day programming.
“QVC has been a terrific corporate partner and their participation and live broadcast have brought the national spotlight to downtown West Chester,” says Mark Yoder, President, Greater West Chester Chamber of Commerce. “Following last year’s QVC national broadcast, we received interest from organizations across the country looking to participate in our special event.”
This year the parade will again be reversing the direction of previous parades. The parade will begin at the intersection of Market and New streets and move up Market Street before turning onto Matlack Street and then onto Gay Street, moving with the flow of traffic.
At 6:30 p.m. hundreds of runners dressed in creative holiday garb will vie for cash prizes and the honor of being awarded the best elf-costume as they compete in the 6th annual Jingle Elf Run to benefit West Chester’s volunteer Fame Fire Company. Registrants receive Jingle Elf hats to keep their ears warm for the 2-mile run or 1-mile walk along the parade route.
Also, more than a dozen high school marching bands will vie for a trophy and $5000 in prize money, plus an additional $500 Fan Favorite award, all sponsored by Univest Bank and Trust. The 2013 Grand Champion, Royersford’s Spring-Ford High, will lead the parade as Honor Band, followed by bands from West Chester’s Henderson and Rustin; Avon Grove, Downingtown, Bishop Shanahan, Owen J. Roberts, Chichester, Octorara and Daniel Boone Area High Schools, Jackson Liberty, Marple Newtown, Springfield (DelCo), Pottsgrove and A.I. DuPont.
There will also be an opportunity to enjoy some shopping alone time with the new Drop, Shop and Wrap event sponsored by West Chester Parks & Recreation. On Saturday, Dec. 6, from 2 to 5 p.m., bring the kids to the West Chester Municipal Building for a fun afternoon while you get away for a little shopping time on your own. For $12 per person, your kids will have a great time doing holiday crafts, decorating cookies and watching a holiday movie. In the meantime, Mom and Dad can get some holiday shopping done with a few hours all to themselves.
All materials are supplied, but pre-registration is required in order for the kids to take part in this event. There is a maximum capacity of 20 children and all kids must be picked up by 5 p.m. Register today for the Drop, Shop and Wrap program via www.westchester.com or by calling (610) 436-9010.
Here are also some dropoff locations for toys being collected for children in the county:
WSFS Drop-Off Locations: Nov. 4 – Dec. 8, 2014
West Chester – 400 E. Market St., West Chester
Edgmont – 5000 W. Chester Pike, Newtown Square
Media – 7 E. Baltimore Ave., Media
Glen Mills – 395 Wilmington-West Chester Pike, Glen Mills
Kennett Square – 100 Old Forge Lane, Kennett Square
Additional Drop-Off Locations:
Parkway Cleaners – 623 E. Gay St., West Chester
Side Bar & Restaurant – 10 E. Gay St., West Chester
Market Street Print & Copy – 204 W. Market St., West Chester
La Difference Salon & Day Spa – 830 Paoli Pike, West Chester
Popcorn Obsession - 118 Painters Crossing, West Chester
Chester County Bar Association – 15 W. Gay St. (2nd Floor), West Chester
Infiniti of West Chester - 715 Autopark Blvd., West Chester
Greater West Chester Chamber of Commerce - 119 N. High St., West Chester
Descriptions and times of all the weekend’s events can be found on the Greater West Chester Chamber of Commerce Website at www. gwcc.org.