Mark your calendar, the Golden Christmas Parade has returned and will be rolling through on Saturday, December 2nd! On top of the parade being back, there are additional holiday activities to look forward to this year, including a shop local program and a celebration at the Spirit Square with music, Santa and refreshments.
Local businesses and organizations have been coming together, with Lavana Rebidoux and her team at Silver City Events & Entertainment at the helm of the planning. There is still time to be a part of the celebration, the deadline to sign up for the parade is Monday, November 27th and there is an ongoing call out for businesses to participate in the Shop Local program.
We had a chat with Lavana about what to expect from this year’s holiday festivities.
Tell me a bit about yourself and your business
I first moved to Golden when I was in Grade 4 and after high school I moved away for school and family but there never was the friendly community feel that Golden has always had. I moved back with my family in 2006. I’ve been DJing in the community for several years and with some downtime during the pandemic, Silver City Events & Entertainment was born which still offers DJing but also branched out into event planning, decorating and a much-needed party rental business.
What inspired the decision to bring back the local Christmas parade?
I have always cared about this community along with its needs and wants and many people have often mentioned to me that the parade was missed or that Golden should do more.
How has the community responded to the idea of reviving the Christmas parade and the additional Holiday Kick-Off events?
People are really excited. I have received much support and many thanks from the community so far but although I have come up with a lot of the new ideas, I am definitely not going at this alone. Thank you so much to my family and my Silver City Team for being so excited to take this on with me. I couldn’t have done it without your support! I have had great support from many groups and businesses. There are also the individuals that come out to our meetings. Plus there are all of our wonderful parade entries and donations coming in which will make some great goodies and prizes to give back to this community.
What can attendees expect from the Christmas parade this year?
This year people seem pretty fired up to get involved and we do have people entering daily with some excellent entries so far. This year’s theme is a Gift of Golden which we hope will showcase the best things about Golden. This event is growing organically based on participation and ideas from the community. We are requesting participation from Golden’s locals and businesses in their own way.
Tell us about the Christmas tree lighting event. Where will it be held, and what special activities or performances are planned for the evening?
Upon walking through the Spirit Square last month I noticed that we have a very nice tree that sits right next to the Pedestrian Bridge and with the help of Golden’s Fire Department, we will be putting up some really cool lights on this tree. We will also be putting in a parade entry for Silver City Events & Entertainment that will be entertaining folks at the Spirit Square celebrations once we are done in the parade, and there will be firepits and hot beverages to keep warm.
Could you elaborate on the shop local program that is part of the Holiday Kick-Off? What benefits does it bring to local businesses and the community as a whole?
I believe that many feel that it can be difficult to shop local but every dollar spent in this community definitely helps this community to thrive and grow and it may even make a huge difference in someone’s holiday season this year as well.
Looking ahead, do you have any long-term plans or visions for the local Christmas parade and associated events?
Yes, we are working on getting a 5 year permit with the highways so we do plan to continue to grow this event yearly. Due to a fairly busy wedding season this year, we were a bit later than we wanted to be getting started on the planning. We do feel like there would be some live performances next year throughout town as well as at the celebrations. We also want to focus more on some extra activities in the south end of downtown, and we welcome as many ideas as this community wants to throw into the mix.
What message would you like to convey to the residents of our town, inviting them to participate and make this year’s Christmas celebrations memorable? –
These folks that are putting this event on are working really hard on it. To the coordinators, the parade participants, and the volunteers I really cannot thank you enough. I believe that these amazing people are all doing it for all of the wonderful residents of Golden because they love this town and its people as much as I do. So be the change you wish to see, Golden. Show your support for these efforts and most of all, have some holiday fun!
For more information on events or if you would like to participate in the parade or the shop local program, please visit www.goldenchamber.bc.ca for details.
If you’re interested in more stories like this, check out our local community stories here.
