Lights and Santa Claus kick off Quincy Valley Christmas Holiday Celebration
CASEY MCCARTHY | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 3 years, 11 months AGO
Kent and Kim Bacon of Quincy provided Mrs. Claus and Santa with their sleigh on Friday night for the drive-thru lights event.
Santa Claus waves and smiles to a family as they swing through the drive-thru lights display in Quincy on Friday night, kicking off the weekend Holiday Celebration.
Santa and Mrs. Claus, bottom right, waved and greeted families as they passed by the light display in downtown Quincy on Friday night.
Letters to Santa Claus were dropped off at the Quincy Christmas celebration on Friday night. The box will sit out front of the Chamber of Commerce throughout the month for anyone who wasn't able to drop their letter off on Friday.
Grant County Fire District 3 helped bring Santa Claus and Mrs. Claus to downtown Quincy Friday evening to kick off the weekend’s Quincy Valley Christmas Holiday Celebration.
They arrived just in time for the 70-foot evergreen in front of Rich Tacos to be illuminated.
The drive-thru light show with Santa Claus was followed by the Christmas Market in the morning and afternoon on Saturday, and the Living Nativity in the evening at the Quincy Valley Historical Society & Museum. Quincy Valley Allied Arts wrapped up the weekend Sunday evening with their virtual Christmas concert.
Cars lined up around Second Avenue and E Street Southeast on Friday, as families and kids waited for their chance to drop off their letters to Santa Claus. (The Christmas letter mailbox will remain outside the Quincy Valley Chamber of Commerce building throughout the month for drop-offs.)
Cari Mathews, executive director of the Chamber of Commerce, said it was great to see the community come together.
“It’s just awesome,” Matthews said on Friday. “And this is just the first night.”
Matthews said that after seeing the success and popularity of the Halloween drive-thru event, she knew organizers needed to do something more for Christmas, as it meant so much to the families and kids in the community.
“This is great,” Matthews said as she watched a line of cars make their way by the display on Friday night. “Just to see this really makes us proud of Quincy.”
Debbie Ramsey donned her best elf costume while helping out as a volunteer Friday. Ramsey volunteers with the Quincy Historical Society and is a librarian at Ancient Lakes Elementary School.
Ramsey said the priority of hosting a different sort of Christmas celebration this year was keeping Quincy healthy and safe.
Seeing everything come together on Friday night was fantastic, she said.
“I work for the Quincy School District at an elementary school in town and I was promoting this all week,” Ramsey said. “The kids were all excited to get to come down and see Santa.”
The Chamber, the City of Quincy, the Historical Society & Museum, Quincy Rotary Club, Quincy Valley Lions Club, Rich Tacos, Stetner Electric and Tobin Electric Inc. were among the local organizations and groups that made the event possible on Friday night. Kent and Kim Bacon helped “bring the Claus family to town” on Friday night, with Kent Bacon making his sleigh.
