Plans set for the 23rd Annual Christmas On The River December 2, 3 And 4
</element><element id="paragraph-1" type="body"><![CDATA[ Chester's Annual Christmas on the River theme this year is Peace on Earth. The official opening will be the Grand Illumination at the Chester Square Gazebo Park; the lights of the community Christmas tree will be lit by Mayor Joe Eggemeyer. A dedication of the holiday season will be given by Pastor Ill, Assistant Pastor of St. John's Lutheran Church and Mike Lochhead will be the Master of Ceremonies. The Chester High School Band, under the direction of Steve Colonel, will perform.
The Lighted Christmas Parade will bring out the child in everyone; there will be singing, music and lights, lights, and more lights. The parade will start at the Chester High School at 7 pm making its way through town ending at the Randolph County Court House. Santa and Mrs. Claus will ride in the parade atop a wagon driven by Amy Stellhorn. A contest for children to ride with Santa and Mrs. Claus will be published in the near future.
Cole Park will once again be the home to Carriage Rides on Saturday; warm yourself by the fire while you wait for a carriage ride. The First Baptist Church of Chester will display a live Nativity during this time. The community is invited to place a display of their own; contact the committee for information.
The ever popular Craft Sale will be at the Randolph County Court House Friday 5-9 pm, Saturday 9 am - 5 pm and Sunday 11 am -3 pm. If additional space is needed, crafters will be located at Chester Skateland.
The Randolph County Herald Triibune's Afternoon with Santa which will be held on Saturday. More details will follow as the plans are finallized.
A Christmas Coloring and the Story/Essay Contests will be held again this year. All entries must be received by 3 pm on Wednesday, November 23 at Chester City Hall; information will be distributed through the schools.
The Christmas Tree Decorating Contest is at Chester Skateland. Individuals, groups, businesses and organizations are invited to decorate a tree which represents their creativity, talent, organization and/or business. Participants must provide their own tree. There will be three categories: 12 years and under, 13 years and over and organization/group/business. A Best of Show, Most Original, Most Unique and Most Traditional will be chosen from each category.
The Traveling Trophy Storefront is up for grabs. Businesses are invited to decorate their storefronts in the spirit of the holiday season and enjoy a little friendly competition for the title and the Traveling Trophy. Judging will be Thursday, December 1st beginning at 5 pm.
As is this river city's tradition, Santa will arrive by boat at the Chester waterfront 10 am Saturday, courtesy of the Chester Boat Club. The Chester High School Band will be on hand and provide holiday music. Everyone is invited to the Chester Boat Club following his arrival for refreshments.
A new event this year will be Dinner with Mark Twain at The Cohen Memorial Home. Details will be published in the near future.
The Chester Tourism Commission will hold the annual Quilt Show on Friday and Saturday. The Community Concert will be held on Sunday, December 4th, 2 PM at the Colbert Memorial Gym at Chester High School.
St. John's will hold its annual Christmas Bazaar and Luncheon on Saturday. St. Mary's School will have its annual Chicken and Dumpling Dinner on Friday and Holiday Home Tour on Saturday.
More information will be published as the plans are finalized. You may contact Patti Carter at christmasontheriver@hotmail.com for more information or to have your event included in the itinerary.