Holly Day Celebration set for Dec. 2

Downtown street party to kick off 2008 Holiday Shopping Season

On a night for the young and young-at-heart, the 2008 holiday downtown shopping season will be ushered in with a fun-filled 'Holly Day Celebration' Tuesday, Dec. 2, 2008. The street party will be launched at 5:00 pm with the lighting of the community Christmas tree on the lawn of the Lenoir County Courthouse.

Guest celebrity emcees for the tree lighting will be Kara Coleman and Bobby Deskins, co-anchors of WCTI12's "Good Morning Eastern Carolina" early morning show.

Plans for the Holly Day Celebration were announced by a coalition of downtown organizations and agencies sponsoring the event: The City of Kinston, Lenoir County, Parks & Recreation, Pride of Kinston, the Kinston-Lenoir County Chamber of Commerce, the Community Council for the Arts, Neuse Regional Library, Queen Street Methodist Church and the Gordon Street Christian Church.

Kids will have a Holly Day train to travel up and down Herritage Street.

"This is the second year that this joyful partnership has planned a downtown holly day celebration to usher in the yuletide season. It will be a fun time with Charles Dickens, music, horse and buggy rides, a train ride, and Herritage Street boutiques open for early shopping. We hope the whole county will come to downtown Kinston to jump start the season. It's a prelude to the annual Christmas parade, 10:00 am, Dec. 13th," according to Pride director Adrian King.

• The party opens at 5:00 pm with the lighting of the community Christmas tree on the Lenoir County Courthouse lawn. The North Lenoir High School Band, the Moppets, and other groups will perform during the opening ceremony. When the switch is flipped for the courthouse tree, it will trigger the lights on the trees throughout Queen Street.
• The party then moves to Herritage Street, Queen Street Methodist Church, the Community Council for the Arts and the Neuse Regional Library for a line up of music and entertainment. Horse and buggy rides and a childrens' train will enliven the Herritage Street venue, along with streetside musicians and carolers.
• Herritage Street merchants will be open to welcome customers and visitors.
• The Queen Street Methodist Church complex will host a seasonal array of visual and performing arts throughout the evening.

A Master Menu

• Also beginning at 5:30 pm, street party participants will be invited to sample "Holly Day" fare at four refreshment centers at sponsoring offices:
  1. Friends of the Neuse Regional Library (510 N. Queen) will offer "savories & sweets of the Dickens' era," catering to young folks for whom a special program of fun and learning is being prepared.
  2. Community Council for the Arts (400 N. Queen) will offer hors d'oeuvres and beverages. Programs for the young and young at heart are also being offered by the arts council.
  3. Pride of Kinston (327 N. Queen) is offering up a tasty Christmas ham.
  4. The Kinston-Lenoir County Chamber of Commerce (301 N. Queen) is offering desserts and other sweets. The four "refreshment centers" will be designated with street-side signage for easy identification.
     
• Children's activities will be featured at several locations on Queen Street
  

• Budding artists will paint seasonal holiday scenes on storefront windows all along Queen Street.

Visit our web site for the most current listing and updates.

Listing of Events by Location

• Lenoir County Courthouse
  • Lighting Ceremony for Community Christmas tree
  • Guest emcees: Kara Coleman & Bobby Deskins WCTI12 Television
  • Performances by North Lenoir High School Band
  • Performances by the Moppets
  • Appearance of the Disney princesses
• Farmers’ Market, 5:30 pm - 8:00 pm
  • Horse & buggy rides
  • Childrens’ Holly Day train rides
• Herritage/North Street Shops
  Open for shopping until 8:00pm
  • Adriana’s
  • Barbaros
  • Black Eyed Susan
  • Blanc Chemisier
  • Briary
  • Broken Eagle
  • CSS Neuse II
  • Folded Napkin
  • J.D. Lewis Antiques
  • Lovick’s Café
  • Our Picnic Basket
  • Parrott’s Store
  • Photographic Expressions by Isaac
  • Reynolds Seafood
  • Right Angle
  • Riverside Bicycles and Outdoor Sports
  • Salon Steven
  • Tied Bouquet
• Holly Day Celebration Stage
  Corner of Gordon & Herritage St.
  
  • 5:30 pm Woodington Middle School Band
  • 6:00 pm Gordon Street Bell Choir
  • 6:30 pm South Lenoir High School Chorus
• Community Council for the Arts*
  • 5:30 pm Hors d’oeuvres
  • 6:00 pm Banks Elementary School Chorus
  • 6:30 pm Moss Hill Elementary School Chorus
  • 7:00 pm Eric Martinez
• Queen Street Methodist Church Sanctuary
  • 6:00 pm Parrott Academy Orchestra
  • 6:30 pm North Lenoir High School Chorus
  • 7:00 pm
  • 7:30 pm Queen Street Chancel Choir
• Queen Street Methodist Church Fellowship Hall
  • 6:00 pm Exhibition of Queen Street Academy artwork
  • 7:00 pm Queen Street Academy Singers
  • 7:30 pm Queen Street Academy Strings
• Neuse Regional Library*
  • 5:30 pm A Dickens Christmas
  • 5:30 pm Sweets & savories
  • 6:00 pm Dulcimers
• Pride of Kinston*
  • 5:30 pm Christmas ham and other treats
• Kinston-Lenoir Chamber of Commerce & Lenoir Economic Development*
  • 5:30 pm Desserts
• Carolers,
  5:30 pm – 8:00 pm, Herritage, North & Blount Streets
  • Queen Street Ensemble
  • La Grange First Free Will Baptist Choir
  • Mona Knowles & Family
  • Walt Disney princesses
• *Holly Day Refreshment Centers