Carnival, light parade a success
KRISTI NIEMEYER | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 11 months, 2 weeks AGO
We thought babies only spoke to Santa, but Mateo Gonzalez appeared to be quite taken with Mr. Grinch at the St. Ignatius Christmas Carnival Saturday. (Christa Umphrey photo)
Expert face painter Randi Gariepy puts finishing touches on a young customer during the Christmas Carnival held Saturday in the St. Ignatius High School gym. (Christa Umphrey photo)
A genuine reindeer, rumored to be on loan from the famed North Pole herd, dropped by St. Ignatius Saturday in time for holiday festivities at Good Old Days Park. (Christa Umphrey photo)
Parade watcher Zayda LaFrombois admired Mission's holiday festivities Saturday, which included a tree-lighting, Parade of Lights, and Christmas Carnival. (Christa Umphrey photo)
Saturday's Parade of Lights in St. Ignatius followed a new route this year. (Christa Umphrey photo)
Kristi Niemeyer is editor of the Lake County Leader. She learned her newspaper licks at the Mission Valley News and honed them at the helm of the Ronan Pioneer and, eventually, as co-editor of the Leader until 1993. She later launched and published Lively Times, a statewide arts and entertainment monthly (she still publishes the digital version), and produced and edited State of the Arts for the Montana Arts Council and Heart to Heart for St. Luke Community Healthcare. Reach her at editor@leaderadvertiser.com or 406-883-4343. | December 6, 2023 11:00 PM
According to Darren Orr – a veritable Father Christmas in St. Ignatius – this year’s Christmas Carnival and Parade of Lights were a huge success.
He surmised that relatively mild weather, i.e. above freezing, boosted turnout for the parade and tree lighting. And fire pits were available at Good Old Days Park, along with chili, hot chocolate and a live reindeer.
The annual carnival, held in the high school gym, drew around 150 children.
“We had so many kids we actually ran out of Santa gifts, which wasn’t the best,” he said. “But at the same time, it was amazing we had that many kids.”
The Grinch put in an appearance, “which made the kids happy,” and more games and booths were available than last year, he said.
After lighting the town tree at Gariepy Park, action moved to Good Old Days Park where organizers ran out of chili and hot chocolate prior to the Parade of Lights, even after cooking twice as much this year.
The reindeer “really brought people in,” says Orr. “But what was amazing was the crowd we didn’t see from down at the park, the people who lined up along the streets of Mission waiting for the Parade of Lights.”
He’s clearly proud of the community’s major Christmas gathering.
“It seems each year, we add something new or try to improve and its working,” he said. “It really does bring our community together and creates a fun safe atmosphere for them all.”
Expert face painter Randi Gariepy puts finishing touches on a young customer during the Christmas Carnival held Saturday in the St. Ignatius High School gym. (Christa Umphrey photo)
A genuine reindeer, rumored to be on loan from the famed North Pole herd, dropped by St. Ignatius Saturday in time for holiday festivities at Good Old Days Park. (Christa Umphrey photo)
Parade watcher Zayda LaFrombois admired Mission's holiday festivities Saturday, which included a tree-lighting, Parade of Lights, and Christmas Carnival. (Christa Umphrey photo)
Saturday's Parade of Lights in St. Ignatius followed a new route this year. (Christa Umphrey photo)