NORWAY — The Oxford Hills Chamber of Commerce will hold its annual Christmas Parade and Festival of Trees over the weekend of Nov. 24.
It’s the seventh year that the chamber has hosted the Festival of Trees and the 41st annual Christmas parade, said Jennifer Boenig of the Oxford Hills Chamber of Commerce.
It’s also one of the most well-attended events in the area, Boenig said, adding that it typically draws “thousands of people.”
“On my first year with the parade, I was thinking, ‘How big can this really be?’” Boenig said. “I finally worked the event and saw with my own eyes how many people come out for this thing. It’s something else.”
The Christmas parade is scheduled to begin at 11 a.m. Saturday, Nov. 25, at Main Street in Norway, and will end around 1 p.m. at Market Square in South Paris.
The theme for the parade is “The 12 Days of Christmas,” Boenig said.
“We try to pick a theme each year that allows people to add musical elements and gives them the ability to take some creative liberties,” she said.
The judges for the parade will be Judy Green of Crazy Horse Racing and her mother, and Christine Yates of the Norway Fire Department. Jeanne Silverman, a board member of the Oxford Hills Chamber of Commerce, will assist in judging each parade float and “may serve as a tiebreaker, if necessary,” Boenig said.
The chamber’s Festival of Trees will take place Nov. 24-26. It will kick off from 5 to 8 p.m. Friday, Nov, 24, at the Twin Town Plaza at 243 Main St., formerly known as the Family Dollar. The festival will continue from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 25, and from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 26.
Santa and Mrs. Claus will visit the Festival of Trees when the parade ends around 1 p.m. and will return from 1 to 3 p.m. Sunday.
Admission to the festival is free, Boenig said, and the trees on display will be given away via raffle. Raffle tickets will cost $1 for one ticket, $5 for six tickets, $10 for 15 tickets, and $20 for 35 tickets. Twenty percent of proceeds will go to local charities.
“In recent years, we have donated money to Rightstart Inc., and split the rest between the food pantries in the area,” Boenig said.
Those who have their names drawn for one of the Christmas trees at the festival will receive a call between 5 and 6 p.m. on Nov. 26, Boenig said.
For more information on the Festival of Trees or the Chamber Christmas Parade, call Boenig at 743-2281 or email jennifer@oxfordhillsmaine.com.
Last year’s Christmas parade in Norway. (Sun Journal file photo)
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