‘Get Your Jingle On’ event promotes holiday fun, shopping
Members of the Elkader Chamber of Commerce put lights up ahead of this weekend’s Get Your Jingle On parade and festivities. Pictured (left to right) are Roger Schmidt, Debbie Schmidt, Amanda Schneider, Sara Hertrampf and Ann Gibney.
By Willis Patenaude, Times-Register
Another shop and dine event is coming to Elkader. This time, it’s the newly-minted “Get Your Jingle On” that stretches over two-days—Friday and Saturday, Nov. 6 and 7—and includes a lighted walking parade that revolves around the Thomas Tree lighting ceremony.
The event, according to Elkader Chamber Coordinator Ann Gibney, came about because the chamber board is “always looking at ideas to get people to come to our great town.” There are a slew of activities taking place Friday evening in an effort to encourage tourism and community involvement.
It all begins with the parade, scheduled to start at 6 p.m. on Friday, Nov. 6. Anyone who wishes to participate should show up at Founders Park at 5:45 p.m. to enter.
The parade route is tentatively scheduled to traverse the sidewalks in the park and start somewhere across from the Catholic Church. The path will be lined with luminaries, kids will be able to make a jingle bell necklace at the pavilion and Brown’s Sales and Leasing will provide hot chocolate and cookies. FreedomBank will light up the river walk railing with lights, members of the Peace Church Bell Choir will perform and Schera’s wall will be lit for the holidays at Keystone Park. Central State Bank will transport Santa, who will bring up the rear of the parade, waving to the crowd from a safe distance.
On Saturday, Nov. 7, the shopping begins, as it is expected most businesses will have their Christmas merchandise available. Saturday is also the first day when people can use the Holiday Punch Card, which can be picked up at participating businesses. When your card is full, you are eligible to win $25 in Chamber Dollars spread across four different drawings. Additionally, all filled punch cards will be automatically entered into a drawing for $250 worth of Chamber Dollars on Dec. 30.
But that’s not all: Chamber Dollars will be available Friday during the parade for entries with the most lights, best jingle and creative theme.
“We hope businesses will have some fun with their employees and enter the parade…we really want this to be a community event,” Gibney said.
One of the reasons for the added activities on Friday night is to bring more attention to the Thomas Tree lighting ceremony. The increased emphasis is to highlight the work Roger Thomas did during his time as Main Street Director.
“Roger’s vision was to someday have Founders Park filled with holiday lights and decorations, and the committee thought the tree would be a good starting point. Our hope is that Get Your Jingle On grows every year,” Gibney said.
The event should be safe for the public since the crowds will be outside, spread out and socially distanced, but masks and other measures are recommended, especially during the parade and when shopping throughout the day on Saturday.
“This is an opportunity for our community to gather outside, so it’s easy to socially distance, and we’ll be happy that we have masks on to keep warm. We are hoping for a nice evening,” Gibney said.
