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HARRISONBURG — The Holiday Parade through downtown Harrisonburg will kick off the holiday festivities this weekend at 7 p.m. Friday.

Lynn Turner, special events coordinator for the Harrisonburg Parks and Recreation Department, said the parade will feature 100 organizations this year.

“It’s mostly churches, school groups and some businesses,” she said.

The parade, with the theme “Rocktown Rockin’ Holiday,” is expected to draw between 5,000 and 6,000 spectators.

Following the parade, Mayor Richard Baugh will participate in a tree-lighting ceremony on Court Square. The James Madison University Marching Royal Dukes also will perform.

Traffic around downtown will be detoured to make way for the parade.

Main Street from Cantrell Avenue to Gay Street, as well as Court Square and the left lane of Liberty Street, will be closed Friday beginning at 5 p.m. Eastbound lanes of Cantrell Avenue from Main to High streets will close at 5:30 p.m.

On Saturday, Harrisonburg’s Shop Til You Drop, now in its second year, will bring even more businesses into the holiday shopping event.

Founded by Anna Melton Pelletier, owner of Mint clothing store, Shop Til You Drop offers extended hours at 26 downtown businesses to encourage shoppers to spend their dollars locally during the holiday season.

This year, Harrisonburg Downtown Renaissance and Merchants of Historic Downtown Harrisonburg are partnering with Pelletier to expand the shopping to more businesses.

“[It’s] modeled after the success of First Fridays Downtown,” said Nicole Martorana, with Harrisonburg Downtown Renaissance. “Locations will offer a chance to mingle in the downtown community and make holiday shopping a celebration rather than a stressful occasion.”

The shopping will begin at 5 p.m. and continue until 9 p.m.

Other scheduled Christmastime events this weekend include:

— The Harrisonburg Department of Parks and Recreation will organize a candy cane hunt for children in kindergarten through fourth grade on Saturday morning. The event is from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Westover Park.

— The Christmas Parade in Dayton will begin at 4 p.m. Saturday. The procession will begin on North Main Street and continue to the bridge and south to Thompson Street.

— Bryce Resort in Basye will host a holiday craft show and sale on Saturday. The event will be held at the resort restaurant and begin at 10 a.m.

— Cave Ridge Vineyard in Mount Jackson will hold a “Holiday Bazaar” on Saturday featuring local food, art and crafts for sale. The free event will feature music by the Central High School choir. The bazaar will be open from 1 to 4 p.m.

Contact Kaitlin Mayhew at 574-6290 or kmayhew@dnronline.com
 
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For more information about Harrisonburg-sponsored holiday events, visit the city’s website at www.harrisonburgva.gov.