Woodstock's Bigger and Brighter Lighting of the Square Activities

The weather outside already feels like Christmas but the warmth of the season will glow brighter than ever at this year’s Lighting of the Square activities scheduled for Friday, November 29, 2019, from 5:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m. throughout the downtown Woodstock area.

The Christmas Tree Walk at the Woodstock Opera House, and Gingerbread House Walk at the Old Courthouse, will begin the festivities with free viewing at 4:00 p.m. Excitement ramps up with the arrival of Santa and Mrs. Claus at the Opera House in grand style at 5:15 p.m. to highlight Friends of the Opera House fundraiser, held from 5:30 p.m. until the Lighting ceremony at 7:00 p.m. Limited tickets for this special event are available on the Opera House website. From 5:30 p.m. - 6:30 p.m., Community Choir carolers will perform around the Square, ending in front of the Old Courthouse, where Northwest Area Arts Council and the Clay Guild will offer unique gift items.

At 7:00 p.m., the main event takes place as the crowd helps Mayor Sager, and Miss and Little Miss Woodstock, count down and pull the switch to illuminate the downtown for the rest of the holiday season. This is followed by live music from local musicians, Jingle Bell Jamboree, as children line up at the Santa Hut for their own personal visit to Santa’s lap, open until the event winds down at 9:00 p.m.

The east side of the Square features the non-profit Elf Escape family activity tent with fun times, and welcome warmth, for kids young and old. Woodstock Public Library provides story time at 5:00, 6:00 and 8:00 p.m., along with craft tables, while Woodstock Recreation Department entertains. Students from WHS Marketing Class and INCubator Class, and Boy Scout Troops 329 & 1329, provide additional activities. Families are encouraged to sign the “Merry Christmas Card” banner the community is sending to troops from Woodstock’s Army National Guard Delta Company battalion stationed in Afghanistan and make donations for soldiers serving overseas in drop boxes located in the tent and around the downtown.

No one goes hungry at Lighting of the Square. Free donuts are offered by Woodstock Heating & Cooling in the Spring House inside the east entrance to the Park; food trucks from Your Sister’s Tomato, Beef Village and Pixie Dawgs will be parked on West Jackson Street by the Old Courthouse; and, downtown restaurants, shops and bars will offer a variety of seasonal specials. Photo opportunities abound with Santa and Mrs. Claus, the Gingerbread Man, Woodstock Willie, and costumed carolers and performers, and First United Methodist Church will be selling wreaths and trees. After the Square lights go on, Woodstock Moose Lodge, 406 Clay Street, opens their doors for a family-friendly dance with Soul Tango, free to those under age 21, $3.00 cover for others and cash bar available, from 8:00 p.m. – 11:00 p.m.

Residents and visitors should be aware that the size of the Lighting of the Square crowd requires closing of streets surrounding the Square no later than 6:00 p.m.; cars already parked will be able to leave at any time, but no other vehicles will be allowed to enter. Lighting of the Square is Woodstock’s biggest annual event and represents months of planning and collaboration between all City of Woodstock Departments, Woodstock Area Chamber of Commerce, Woodstock Community Choir and Band, Friends of the Opera House and Friends of the Old Courthouse, Woodstock Fire/Rescue District and many local organizations, merchants and vendors. A complete listing of the evening’s events is posted on www.woodstockil.gov, www.realwoodstock.com and www.woodstockilchamber.com. For more information, contact Lighting of the Square Project Manager Krista Coltrin, kcoltrin@woodstockil.gov .