MELFORT — After the success of last year’s Christmas lights contest, the City of Melfort is once again hosting the now annual event, bringing a flash of colour to the community.
“We had over 100 entries last year going into it, it was really awesome,” said Shannon Marshall, Melfort’s recreation and aquatics manager. “We’re hoping to get as many or more entries than last year. Last year I think we had a lot of entries just because people were around home and really needed something positive to focus on, but we’re hoping this year is just as good”
The number of entries in 2020 was so large that it resulted in the creation of a twinkle tour – another feature that Marshall said the city is bringing back.
For the twinkle tour, the city organizes the light submissions into a map for a night of self-led tours around the city. Marshall said the city will begin to distribute the maps toward the end of November or early December.
Spectators will be able to pick up a copy at the Northern Lights Palace pool or city hall, with online copies available on City of Melfort social media pages, which will be updated as more submissions come in.
“All the Christmas contest entries are leading up to that big day,” she said. “This is just about recognizing people that put in a lot of effort to make their house look super festive during the holiday season. We want to make sure they get recognized, it’s just a fun competition for the community.”
Three winning sets will be selected by Melfort Communities in Bloom, who will be making their judgments based on creativity, quantity and colour. Marshall said all prizes will be locally bought items or gift cards to local businesses.
The registration deadline is Dec. 17, with winners being announced on Dec. 20. Nominations can be made by emailing [email protected]. People may nominate their own property, or another which they consider to be beautifully decorated.
Last year, Marshall said one of the set pieces that stood out were snow sculptures, with local wood carvers on the south side coordinating their properties to create a block of sculptures. Another unique feature was interactive displays, with one set having residents dress up as reindeer and frolicking throughout, and another with Father Christmas himself.
“We just want as many people involved as possible. Light displays are neither too big nor too small, people enjoy driving around and seeing all of them. The more houses nominated the more fun it is so we want absolutely everyone in there.”
For more information individuals can contact the Northern Lights Palace pool at 306-752-7200.
