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Date: 11/24/2021
BELCHERTOWN – After a virtual event in 2020 because of COVID-19, the Belchertown Cultural Council’s Winter Light Night returns to the common with a tree lighting and holiday activities.
Trista Hevey, a member of the Belchertown Cultural Council’s Winter Light Night Committee, discussed the plan to put the event together for the first time in 2018.
“We started Winter Light Night in 2018 and it started out with a few community members wondering why there was not a lighting of the season in our town common, because we have a beautiful common. At the time, there was also another committee restoring the lights on the common so that sparked an idea of putting together a community-focused event to kick off the season and light the town common,” she said.
Throughout the day there will be a variety of holiday activities for everyone.
“We have hot chocolate, we have a smores station, we have a luminary station for an art activity, we will have music, Girl Scouts who will be doing caroling, different activities, Frosty will be making an appearance to hand out candy canes, and then at 5:30 [p.m.] we light the common so it is the first time the tree will be lit up along with the surrounding lights. That really sets the tone for the rest of the season,” Hevey said.
From 1 p.m. to 3 p.m., Hevey said people can participate in a giving tree.
“This year we are partnering with the Quabbin Art Association, and they will be hosting a giving tree, I attended it last year and it was a lot of fun. Our town memorial tree becomes a gift exchange so you can go up and pick one thing off the tree, it could be an art kit, it could be a donation from a local artist, there was a number of different items that you could select from last year, so we integrated that into Winter Light Night this year,” she said.
On top of all the winter festivities at the common, Hevey said the council is also hosting an artisan craft fair at the Old Town Hall at 28 Park St. Because of the town’s indoor mask mandate, the Cultural Council will be providing masks and hand sanitizer if necessary.
“It also happens to be Small Business Saturday and at the Cultural Council we thought we could support local businesses and started our artisan fair,” she said. “The artisan fair runs 12 to 5 p.m. so you can shop small with different local vendors, and I want to say 90 percent are from Belchertown and the rest are from the surrounding areas so there are lots of things to purchase.”
Between arts and crafts from local artists, Hevey said the artisan fair will have something for everyone.
“It is definitely a variety, there is everything from local ornaments to holiday crafts but there are also soaps and resin art, there are framed pieces of artwork from local artists, there are so many different jewelry makers, people who make handcrafted purses and keychains, to be honest there is a little bit of everything,” she said. “It is a small space, but you can do a lot of local shopping and leave with a lot of wonderful gifts.”
Hevey said she is excited to see how people enjoy the event in its first year back.
“I am excited to be back in person, but I am also excited because there are so many activities and I really try to take a few minutes and just look around to watch people experience it. I think it looks very much like a Hallmark movie, our town common is beautiful but when you light up the common and bring your community out, it sets up a whole different stage,” she said.
Winter Light Night would not be possible without support from the community.
“The most important thing is that it is brought together by the community. The Cultural Council forms it, we bring the people and work to make it happen, but the local support from our community members, especially our business owners this year have stepped up and said they want to see this happen,” Hevey said. “These businesses have really stepped up and supported every aspect.”
The town’s memorial tree is as important to the town as the lighting itself.
“The tree we light has a lot of history around it and the Fair Committee actually adorns it with memorial ornaments every fair and when we light it up, it is for the holiday season. We also turn it on during hard times, when we were in the middle of quarantine, we turned on the light as a symbol of hope,” Hevey said. “The whole event is special in those little ways.”