Plans for Santa’s visit changing
Plans for a visit by Santa Claus to the Town of Amherst have had to be altered.
Due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the Amherst Y’s Men Club and the Town of Amherst had planned to hold a stationary Christmas parade during the evening of Nov. 28, 2020. It would have seen people drive along Tantramar Crescent to view stationary floats decorated in the theme of a Nova Scotia Christmas before having a chance to see the jolly old elf.
However, a lack of participants has forced the organizers to cancel the event.
“It was a difficult decision to make but with thoughtful consideration and only a few organizations having applied, both the Amherst Y’s Men Club and the
Town agreed it just wasn’t possible to move forward.” said Cheryl Laliberté, the town’s well-being manager said.
“It’s disappointing to cancel but we look forward to working with the town again next year,” said Charlie Seymour from the Amherst Y’s Men Club.
The committee would like to extend a heartfelt thank you to Weston Bakeries Ltd., LED Roadway Lighting Ltd. and Cumberland County Transportation Services for partnering with the town to provide transportation services.
While disappointed the event will not proceed, Laliberté said plans are being developed to ensure Santa does visit the town prior to Christmas.
“The details of just how Santa will visit are still being worked out,” she said. “As soon as they are, we will let people know when he’s going to be in community via our town’s website and social media.”
While the plans for the parade have been altered, there are still several holiday events that will be taking place in town between now and Dec. 25. Among those are the annual Amherst Cookie Crawl, which will be held on Dec. 4 and Dec. 5. In addition, the Holiday Shopping Passport event will run between Nov.13 and Nov. 28. It will give people a chance to win a prize pack containing $1,350 in gift cards that come from participating restaurants and shops.
A holiday lights contest will run in December. It will ask citizens to submit pictures of their holiday lighting for a chance to win prizes.
More details on these events will be released in the near future.
The public health orders governing the size of crowds are also preventing the annual light-up ceremony from taking place in Victoria Square on Nov. 27, but work is underway to present a virtual holiday celebration that will include a virtual light-up and entertainment on that date. This event will be similar to the virtual Canada Day celebration.
