Cedar City Ready To Get Lit

You may have had fun trying to navigate through downtown Cedar City Monday morning. Main street from 200 North to Center Street (or University Boulevard if you prefer) was closed for several hours and then Center St. / University Blvd was also closed for a time. Crews were busy getting the Christmas lights up above the streets of downtown. So when do the lights come on?

That will be on Saturday, November 26^th, and everyone is invited to attend the festivities. Events will kick off at 4pm when the food trucks open for business. At 4:15pm pre-show event begin, including a Christmas Tree Decorating Contest with the Iron County Care and Share. The official program kicks off at 5pm, just as the skies begin to darken. There will be dance presentations and great musical performances. Then, at 6pm Santa will arrive to bring the magic of the season to light as the lights will be turned on. This year, one lucky child will get to fly in with Santa, as the Jolly Old Elf with park the sleigh for the night and arrive with one of SUU's Aviation intructors. After the lights come on, everyone is invited to follow Santa to the Festival Hall where Santa will be available for free pictures with families. There will also be free hot chocolate, dozens of Christmas trees, an auction and a kids area.

Going on at the same time at Festival Hall will be the annual Holiday Tree Jubilee Fundraiser. They are asking for a family donation of $25 for the Jubilee and the proceeds will go to local children and teens that are in need. You could even win one of the decorated trees on display that evening. This will be a great community event and a delight for the entire family. And there more going on outside of downtown Cedar City.

If you live in Parowan, the festivities start on Friday the 25^th with the annual Christmas In The Country. The Holiday Bizarre starts at 10am and goes on all day at the Iron County Fair building. Then on Saturday, Parowan will have Santa's Parade starting at 10am, with the Holiday Bizarre continuing for a second day. At 6pm will be the Parowan Candlelight Walking Parade where community members are invited to bring candles and walk along. Then at 6:15, Parowan will hold their Town Lighting Ceremony in the Parowan Town Square. And the lights won't just be shining in the downtown areas.

You should add to your calendar a trip down Christmas Lane on the north side of Cedar City in the Canyon Ridge neighborhood. Each house is decorated individually, but they all combine to tell the story of “Night Before Christmas.”

And it is worth the time to head over to Ben Hohman's Holiday Light Extravaganza. Matthew Broderick and Danny DeVito (“Deck the Halls” movie) have nothing on Ben. The location is 26 North 1150 West in Cedar. It would be hard to miss.We can only imagine the power bill for his holiday season, but it is all for a good cause as Ben contributes the donations from the display to the Make A Wish Foundation. All you need is to merry, because all around the community you'll be able to see the bright.