Festive fun kicking off in Town of Yarmouth

Holiday activities are just around the corner in the Town of Yarmouth.

Kicking off the fun is the town’s annual Christmas tree lighting on Friday, Nov. 25 at 6 p.m. at the town hall. Frost Park is also once again being lit up for the season.

Wreaths have also been installed along Main Street. As a throwback to Candy

Cane Lane from decades ago, red and white lights have been alternated on the lamp poles. This has been a joint initiative between the town and the Yarmouth and Area Chamber of Commerce.

The chamber is also hosting the Evergreen Festival this year. The festival is held annually in Halifax and organizers there have been interested in expanding it across the province.

As part of the festival in Yarmouth, there will be music, a free public skate, a Christmas craft show, and more. The start of the festival on Nov. 25 coincides with the tree lighting.

A festival signature event planned for Saturday, Dec. 17 is a 1.5-kilometre Santa Shuffle fun run on Main Street. People are encouraged to register early for the event, which will depart from Frost Park at 9:30 a.m.

“To make the race day merry and bright we will be giving out Santa hats, reindeer antlers and finisher medals. Feel free to come dressed in your holiday best. There will be refreshments in the park as well,” reads an event description.

Monetary and toy donations for families in need will also be accepted.

Participants can register online at Race Roster. A link is included on the Yarmouth and Area Chamber of Commerce’s

Facebook page. You can also find festival updates on the page as well.

Encouraging people to support local businesses is also an objective of the festival.

The chamber is also partnering with the Downtown Yarmouth group for Merry Madness, which YASTA and the town are also helping to promote. The fifth annual event features a shopping spree at local and independent businesses on Nov. 25 and 26.

“With your $20 purchase of a Merry Madness ticket you get a tote DTY shopping bag and a shopping guide with exclusive specials, sales, freebies and samples from participating downtown businesses,” reads an event description. People also have the opportunity to win prizes when they get their guide stamped at participating locations.

Merry Madness tickets are available online at www. eventbrite.ca (event name is 2022 Downtown Merry Madness) and also locally at The Style Merchant, Every Bloomin’ Thing, Tooie’s Country Story, and Frenchy’s on Glebe Street.

There are also other events planned in the coming weeks.