By Josh Troy, Clarksdale Advocate
The City of Clarksdale’s second annual I’ll Be Home for Christmas Festival activities will begin on Nov. 30 and run through New Year’s Eve. I’ll Be Home for Christmas Festival founder Josephine Rhymes gave an outline of some of the schedule and encouraged community participation. “Last year, I’m sure you all had a wonderful time, and we have a wonderful time planned for you this year,” she said.
There will not be a formal lighting of the Second Street bridge, as there has been in the past, but Rhymes said, “We are going to light the bridge, so watch for the lights.” The festival will begin with the City of Clarksdale’s Christmas parade at 7 p.m. on Nov. 30 in downtown Clarksdale.
“The big day is Dec. 1st, which will be the lighting of the huge Christmas tree at the stage downtown,” Rhymes said. The lighting of the Christmas tree will be at 5:30 p.m. on Dec. 1. “We will have all the activities we had last year and more,” Rhymes said. The City of Clarksdale and Crossroads Economic Partnership, also known as the Chamber of Commerce, will sponsor the events.
A Holly Jolly Christmas Trolley will tour the community and give candy out. The trolley ride will allow the community to see Christmas decorations around town. The Aaron E. Henry Community Health Center provides the trolley. There will be a Santa in the Park event at 9 a.m. on Dec. 2. More information will be available when the I’ll Be Home for Christmas Festival schedule is published.
Christmas at Carnegie, at the Carnegie Public Library, will be at 5:30 p.m. on Dec. 7 with books, games, hot chocolate, funnel cakes, a bouncy house, and music for adults across the street from the library. The Taste of Christmas will be at 5:30 p.m. on Dec. 14 at the Clarksdale Civic Auditorium. Edna Luckett’s band will perform, and there will be games. Rhymes said information about how vendors could enter their food in the Taste of Christmas will be posted on Facebook at a later date.
A ribbon-cutting for the new Sasse Park with an outdoor fitness court will be at 3 p.m. on Dec. 19. There will be music, games, and Christmas activities. A New Year’s Eve party with a ball dropping will be downtown on Dec. 31. “We’re looking forward to seeing you at all of our activities,” Rhymes said. “Come out, have a good time, and enjoy the good things that we have prepared for you.” Rhymes said a full schedule with the information, times, and locations for each event will be published at a later date.
