Santa Claus is Coming to Town

Excitement is building for the annual lighted Christmas parade on Saturday, December 14 to be followed by Winter Wonderland, both of which are sponsored by the local Valley Service Organization. The theme of this year’s parade is “An Old-Fashioned Christmas,” and it will be the first lighted Christmas parade that local icon Teense Willford will not announce. This year’s announcer is Larry Cloyd who is excited to follow in the footsteps of Willford.

The parade will start lining up at 4:30 on the 14th at the current site of Valley Village Day Care and Excel Preschool, also known to many as the old medical clinic. At 5 p.m., parade entrants will proceed north on River Street to Willow Street, turn left, proceeding to Highway 130, turn right and head down the hill toward the intersection of Bridge and 1st Streets, turn left again and then left on 2nd Street and into the parking lot of the Platte Valley Community Center, where the magic of Christmas is embodied in a Winter Wonderland, created by VSO.

Following the parade, children and their families are invited to enjoy a free chili/hotdog dinner with hot chocolate and cookies in Winter Wonderland while they await their turn visiting with Santa and Mrs. Claus who will star in the parade and be available to chat with children in Winter Wonderland.

Businesses, organizations and groups are currently being contacted about entering a float in this year’s parade, which is open to all. If you are interested in having a float in this year’s parade, but have not been contacted, please stop by the Saratoga-Platte Valley Chamber of Commerce to fill out an entry form or call the Chamber at 307-326-8855. Parade entries are due by Friday, Dec. 13th.

This year marks the 43rd year members of VSO have been putting together a Winter Wonderland. For many years, the event was held outside on Veteran’s Island but once the community center was built, the organization moved it’s celebration inside and it has become a tradition that many local families look forward to each December.