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West Jefferson Celebrates Opening of Ashe Christmas Tree Farms with Parade and Lighting of the Town Nov. 15

By Madison Fisler Lewis

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Nov. 12, 2014. Downtown West Jefferson is wasting no time getting the holiday festivities underway this year. The perfect place to witness a small, hometown Christmas, West Jefferson will host a holiday parade and the inaugural Light Up the Town on Saturday, Nov. 15, to celebrate the coming of the holidays and the opening of Ashe County’s choose and cut farms.

The annual West Jefferson Holiday Parade will begin at 3 p.m., and will feature live music from local bands, dance groups, churches, local businesses, fire and rescue trucks, police cars and much more. Of course, families will get a chance to see Santa Claus before he gets busy working on his list and checking it twice!

The parade route will follow Jefferson Avenue through the middle of downtown and turn off at the intersection of Jefferson Avenue and 2nd Street.

“We usually get at least 5,000 people who come out to the parade,” said Wesley Barker, town clerk of West Jefferson. “There are a lot of locals that come, but there are a lot of visitors that come too.”

The inaugural Light Up the Town will begin at 5 p.m. following the Holiday Parade. The downtown area will feature more than 30 holiday displays lit up for the world to see featuring scenes like nativity scenes and Christmas trains. During the event, downtown restaurants and merchants will feature special deals, giveaways and live music. Hot cider will be provided by Skyline/Skybest.

Between the parade and the Light Up the Town event, locals and visitors will have time to explore downtown businesses to see what they have to offer, and register to win the West Jefferson Holiday Gift Basket, which features offerings from downtown local businesses.

And don’t forget about the annual Canned Food Drive held by the Ashe Sharing Center. Bring canned food items to donate at one of the many downtown drop off locations to help neighbors in need this holiday season.

For more information about this event, click here.