City of Lenoir moving forward with some events, canceling others

LENOIR, NC (October 12, 2020) — The City of Lenoir plans to hold some holiday events this year and cancel some others based on Centers for Disease Control and State guidelines.

The City is moving forward with the Downtown holiday light show. Staff plans to place a massive Christmas Tree in Downtown, and the City will also hold the Luminary Display at Blue Ridge Memorial Park in December.

“Due to state and federal guidelines, there are quite a few events that we’re not going to be able to hold,” Mayor Joe Gibbons said. “But thankfully, there are some things we can do. We want to do what we can to spread some hope and joy.”

Main Street Director Kaylynn Horn and Public Works Director Jared Wright plan to decorate a large, 1,000-light Christmas Tree on the square. Staff will turn the Christmas Tree lights on Friday Nov. 20. The Downtown Holiday Light Show will start that day as well. Residents are encouraged to visit downtown and enjoy the light show while staying safe.

“It’s been a difficult year for everyone, but we are going to do what we can make this holiday season shine a little brighter,” Horn said. “Due to the mass gathering limits, we can’t hold some of our holiday events, but we still want people to come Downtown to eat and shop and enjoy the bright lights of the holiday season.”

The Christmas Tree and Holiday Light show will be on display from Nov. 20 to Jan. 4, 2021. 

The Luminary Display at Blue Ridge Memorial Park will be Friday Dec. 11 at 6:00 p.m. with a rain date of Friday, Dec. 18. City staff will place nearly 8,000 luminaries throughout the cemetery. Residents can drive through the cemetery and visit the graves of their loved ones all evening.

“We love the holiday season and wish we could do more, we really do,” Mayor Gibbons said. “Hopefully, we’ll be able to hold a lot more events next year. Until then, I want to wish all of our residents a Happy Halloween, Happy Thanksgiving, and Merry Christmas.”

The following City events have been canceled due to state mass gathering limits:

• Downtown Lenoir Pumpkin Patch Parade and Downtown Trick-Or-Treating
• Halloween Carnival at the Martin Luther King Jr. (MLK) Center
• Light Up Lenoir Christmas Tree Gallery
• Downtown Lenoir Starry Night Christmas Parade
• Holiday Film at Lenoir High School Auditorium
• Santa Claus is Coming to Town at the MLK Center

The CDC as well as NCDHHS suggest alternative Halloween activities instead of traditional door-to-door trick-or-treating. If residents do choose to trick-or-treat or hand out candy, they should follow the NCDHHS and CDC guidelines below.

Click here to read information from the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services.

Click here to read the CDC Holiday Guidelines.