“We are planning it and we are building it,” says Sue Morison of the second edition of the Christmas Village created by the Livestock Breeders Association of the District of Beauharnois (LBA), which is set to light up the Ormstown fairgrounds on December 2 and 3. Morison admits the warm weather over the last few weeks has made stringing thousands of lights a more pleasant job this year, and the LBA is ramping up efforts to ensure this edition is even merrier than the last.
There will be a few changes this year, the most significant being the decision to limit the event to between 4 and 9 p.m.
Visitors will find a bustling Christmas market in the Industrial Building, festive snacks and hot chocolate flowing from the candy shoppe, and a chance for little ones to personally hand their letters to Santa or send them directly to the North Pole through the magical mailbox on site. Children will also be able to meet and have photos taken with enchanted wonderland fairies and other holiday characters, while it’s rumoured the Grinch may be plotting a return to the area.
Morison says the LBA hopes the event will help to instill the spirit of the holidays in the Valley. “When we were young, we would drive around and look at the lights,” she recounts, suggesting the volunteers working to prepare the grounds are hoping to tap into this sense of nostalgia. “We do it for the joy, for the children,” she says. “It’s magical.” (SR)
