Five-year-old Adiline gets a hug from "Elsa," queen from the Frozen movies, at Saturday's Christmas on Broadway celebration. Elsa (cosplayer and former La Cygne resident Savannah Kratzberg) would lead the Frozen-themed parade later in the evening. (Photos by Roger Sims / Linn County Journal)
By Roger Sims, rsims@linncountyjournal.com
For the few things that went wrong on Sunday’s Christmas on Broadway and the light parade that followed, there were many things that went right.
Despite the breezy, cold, and cloudy weather on Sunday, Nov. 7, the turnout for the holiday event in La Cygne was good. Despite a misfire in lighting the Mayor’s Christmas Tree, a patient and sizable crowd stayed in Thayer Park until an extension cord was found to fire it up.
Despite having to close down the face-painting room half an hour early because there were too many children waiting in line for the two artists, dozens of children who had their face painted beamed, happy with their new look.
Five-year-old Decker discusses an upcoming event with Santa Claus.
And even though volunteers with the Prairie View Educational Foundation ran out of fixings for their walking taco dinner, that meant that they received more donations than they had anticipated.
In retrospect, the mishaps were minor, and the dozens of people who braved the cold seemed to enjoyed themselves.
In the Swan Room of La Cygne Library, children had the opportunity to visit Santa and make multicolored stuffed bears. In the Great Room at the other end of the library, dozens of people ate their tacos and sang carols along with a quintet of young musicians. Many of those who were there for dinner also won prizes during the raffle.
Colton and Sarah Easdon and children Abigail, Daniel and Josiah, stuff colorful polka-dot bears from kits that were given away in the library.
Out on Broadway, children rode the Christmas train or drove self-propelled animals around an inflated track. Across the street from the library, Peoples Telecommunication staff handed out cookies and cocoa, and the La Cygne Historical Society’s museum conducted a bake sale and gave visitors a chance to get a glimpse at an old fashioned Christmas.
As darkness began to descend on the celebration, Mayor Debra Wilson gathered more than a dozen members of her family around the Mayor’s Christmas Tree and wished the crowd that was gathered her greeting for the holidays. However, on a sad note she remembered former La Cygne mayor and prominent citizen Keith Smith, who had passed away the night before.
La Cygne Mayor Debra Wilson, center in the blue sweater, gathered her family around her to light the Mayor's Christmas Tree.
By 5:30 p.m., night had fallen and it was time for the parade of lights. Leading the parade was “Elsa,” the main figure from Disney’s “Frozen” movies. She was followed by the Prairie View High School Pride of the Buffalos Marching Band with each musician draped in Christmas lights.
What followed were floats, lit-up vehicles, a city fire truck, and a group of three people on horseback from the Pleasanton Saddle Club, their presence in memory of club member Mark Davis who died in a freak accident early in the fall.
Wearing their glow-up lights, members of the Prairie View marching band lit up Broadway as they played.
Winners of prizes for best parade entries were Beauty on Broadway for first place (making this business two firsts for for the first two years of the lighted parade so far), PVHS senior Parker Emery took second place, and Hailey and Levi Nickels won third place.
Ray of Hope Foundation members Keith Stoker and Rick Weber gave away warm hats and gloves in the foyer of the library. Almost all of the children's hats and gloves were taken.
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