Christmas Comes Early At The Chamber
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Chamber Report
By Jessie Gurner
There is something slightly ridiculous about planning Christmas events in August. Outside, temperatures are still soaring. The air conditioner is working overtime and walking across a parking lot in the afternoon can make you reconsider whether you really needed whatever you went outside to get.
And yet, at the Chamber, we are already talking about football, Christmas lights, carriage rides, holiday shopping and a parade. That is one of the funny things about planning events. By the time everyone else is ready to enjoy them, somebody has usually been working on them for months.
With the Watermelon Carnival behind us, the Chamber calendar is beginning to fill again, and between now and the end of the year there is quite a bit coming our way.
First up will be the Chamber’s second Tailgate in the Valley. A giant screen will bring the game to the crowd, and everyone is welcome to bring tents, grills and lawn chairs and settle in for the afternoon. If hauling a grill around does not sound like your idea of a good time, that is fine too. Food trucks will be there serving up game-day favorites.
There will be plenty of room to spread out, visit with friends and cheer for your team. Or cheer against somebody else’s team. Or just keep an eye on the score and cheer for whoever happens to be winning.
Of course, sitting here in August and talking about a “nice fall afternoon” does require a certain amount of faith. But cooler weather always manages to find us eventually.
After football season gets us headed toward cooler days, one of the first real signs that Christmas is on its way is the annual Holiday Open House. Around town, participating businesses, restaurants and boutiques will welcome shoppers with holiday displays, special promotions, treats and sales. It is an opportunity to get an early start on Christmas shopping, find something a little different and support businesses right here at home.
There is something especially nice about Christmas shopping downtown. The windows are decorated, you see people you know, and you can wander from store to store without circling a giant parking lot waiting for somebody to finally back out of a space. Shoppers will also be able to register at participating businesses for door prizes, with the Chamber sponsoring a $500 gift certificate grand prize.
By December, downtown takes on an entirely different look with Christmas in the Valley. Railroad Park glows with Christmas lights, downtown windows are decorated, holiday music fills the air, and local food vendors give everyone another good reason to linger. Downtown businesses stay open later that evening, making shopping an important part of Christmas in the Valley as well. Visitors can browse for gifts, stop for something to eat, visit with friends and enjoy the downtown atmosphere as the evening unfolds.
The traditional horse-drawn carriage rides will once again carry passengers through Water Valley’s historic streets, with tickets available through the Chamber office. Children can visit with familiar holiday characters, including Frosty the Snowman, while somewhere downtown the wandering Chamber Elf will be making the rounds and presumably staying out of trouble. Mostly.
December also brings the annual Christmas Tour of Homes, another longtime Water Valley holiday tradition. The tour gives visitors the opportunity to step inside several of Water Valley’s historic, distinctive and charming homes, all decorated for Christmas. Part of the fun is that no two houses are alike. Some decorating is elegant and traditional. Some reflects generations of family Christmases and collections gathered over many years. And sometimes the house itself, with its architecture, history and details, is every bit as interesting as the decorations.
And, of course, December in Water Valley would not be complete without the Christmas Parade. Families find their favorite places along the route. Children wait for Santa. Floats, bands and Christmas lights make their way through town, and for a little while downtown belongs to the parade. What we cannot promise is actual Christmas weather. December in Mississippi has given us parade nights that called for knitted caps and heavy coats and others that brought the Watermelon Carnival T-shirts back out of the drawer. We just schedule the parade and let the weather make its own arrangements.
So yes, it is still August. The pavement is hot, the humidity is hovering, and Christmas seems a very long way off. But at the Chamber, plans are already underway for Tailgate in the Valley, Holiday Open House, Christmas in the Valley, the Christmas Tour of Homes and the Christmas Parade. Dates and more details will be announced soon, but for now we will keep working on fall and Christmas while the thermometer insists it is still very much summer. By the time the weather catches up with the calendar, we should be ready.
