Bonners Ferry Christmas tree lighting to be a festive day
October 28, 2011
TThis year's Bonners Ferry tree lighting celebration is shaping up to be a festive day that no one looking to get into the Christmas spirit will want to miss. Organizers are already working hard to get Bonners Ferry merchants in the mood to kick off a holiday season that will be long remembered.

Carolers will begin making the rounds in downtown Bonners Ferry beginning at 4 p.m. Friday, November 25, as families gather for the official lighting of the Bonners Ferry Christmas tree at 4:30 p.m. in Georgia Mae Plaza.

Mrs. Claus will gather children for her husband, Santa's, arrival, and he'll be riding not a sleigh, but a City of Bonners Ferry fire truck. There'll be free hot chocolate or coffee to keep everyone warm, and participating stores will be open until 7 p.m., filling kids' stockings with unbelievable treasure.

Every child who is there for the lighting celebration will get their own stocking, along with a card listing all of the places where they will have an opportunity to stuff their stocking ... it's up to the parents whether that stocking then has to be taken home and hung by the mantle with care, or if they can enjoy the generosity of our local merchants right there ... emptying the stocking before they hang it at home in hopes that they've been good and Santa will refill it with more great things on Christmas morning!

All local merchants are being asked to contribute to the festivities; decorating their window displays with a festive motif, with the opportunity to win the coveted "Best Holiday Storefront" award, keeping their stores open longer that evening, and letting organizers Lillie Blackwell or Eldora Gatchell know what you can contribute to the kids stockings or have planned for that evening. If any Bonners Ferry merchant hasn't yet been contacted, the form is available by clicking here, which can be filled out and dropped off at Beck's Furniture or mailed to Eldora at P.O. Bos 1739, Bonners Ferry, ID 83805, or you can contact Lillie at (208) 267-2775.

In addition, that card given the kids is going to have a place for all participating merchants to stamp or mark off that the child and their families visited, and when they're done. When they're done, they'll have November 25 and November 26 to get those cards to Larson's, where they'll be entered in a drawing for a Larson's gift certificate. The kids winning that drawing will get a Larson's gift certificate that they can use to buy Mom or Dad a great present, or, if they're so inclined, use to buy themselves or their siblings a toy from Larson's Christmas toy section!

Each merchant can also sponsor a small Christmas tree, three to 4 1/2 feet in height, for which everyone can buy a $1 raffle ticket. Drawing for the winners will be held Monday, December 19. All funds raised through the Merchant's Christmas Tree Raffle will go to the holiday fund to build up next year's Christmas celebration ... if that's possible.

While the event will be a boon to all the merchants who choose to take part, the over-riding goal is to give each child who attends the lasting memory of an unforgettable Christmas season kick-off in Bonners Ferry ... a memory that will live with them forever, and one they'll one day want their children to enjoy ... in the happy little Village of Bonners Ferry!