If you have been pondering how to manage what could be very scaled down menus for Thanksgiving family feasts in the age of COVID-19, you are not alone. Summers County residents are among those cautioned to keep gatherings to a minimum, and that puts Hinton on the map for taking all necessary precautions entering the holiday season. How to keep people safe is top priority in planning extensive celebrations leading up to the Christmas holidays according to Hinton Mayor Jack Scott and the coordinators of Second Saturdays’ Small Business Saturday and Hinton’s Hometown Christmas. Wear your masks and comfortable walking shoes because Hinton is hosting an extravaganza like no other as events begin the Saturdays after Thanksgiving and the following weekend.
Christmas lighting, decorations and marketing activities are popping up throughout Hinton for Small Business Saturday, Nov. 28, spreading out to different locations throughout the town for social distancing for both Saturdays. Public works crews have strung colorful holiday lights and decorations along the bridge coming into town on Temple Street, windows are filling up with seasonal displays, and Santa’s sleigh has arrived in the City Park at Temple and 3rd Avenue. A fully decorated Christmas tree and a seasonally festive looking stage await performances in just a few days. This week merchants are wrapping up preparations to host shoppers, vendors setting up for sales in holiday markets surrounded by an abundance of celebrations orchestrated in unison from the historic McCreery Hotel to the Freight Depot, the Middle School Gym, the Tech Center and Mistletoe Market in the old Penney’s store. Free Christmas movies will be shown at the Ritz Theatre and the Lions Club will be bringing in freshly cut trees for a Christmas tree sale in the park.
For social distancing, local retail stores, merchant markets and the annual holiday bazaar will be conducted at various venues, fully equipped with hand sanitizers, masks and procedures for limiting admission to specific numbers to comply with health department guidelines and recommendations. There will be a Mistletoe Market for kids to shop for their parents. So shopping opportunity will be conducted and promoted to keep holiday shopping and spending within the community, creating a holiday shopping local. Mayor Scott says Hinton is chiming in on the nation’s “shop local,” and local merchants are working with city and civic committees to scatter joy, cheer, and Christmas everything in a production filled with attractive displays for window shopping and Christmas spirit in a miniature version of a big city Christmas. There will be caroling and one of Second Saturdays coordinators, Amy Richmond, says they’ve planned “12 Days of Christmas featuring 12 evenings of music.”
A great deal of planning and volunteer hours have been invested are in what Hinton hopes may be a most spectacular COVID-19 era community holiday celebration. Local non-profits and churches will be among local cottage businesses normally seen at Railroad Days and the Water Festival. Ask anyone involved and you’ll hear one version or another of an enthusiastic and welcoming twist on “the show must go on,” filling hearts, minds and holiday spirit to make hometown Hinton stand out above the rest as the city turns spotlights on all of Hinton’s many businesses within the community during the season.
Civic leaders, volunteers and merchants have worked with as tireless elves preparing for history. The mayor is laser-focused on promoting the local economy. “We are seeing this focus throughout the country,” he said “Trying to keep shopping local for the holiday season is the goal,” as he referred to adjustments this and other communities have faced during the COVID-19 health and economic crisis. You can support the local economy by marking your calendars and participating in:
Small Business Saturday Nov. 28 at 10 a.m. – 3 p.m., Downtown Hinton, featuring local artisans and crafters in The McCreery, Freight Depot and the Mistletoe Market, and supporting our storefronts and local eateries.
The Hinton Lions Club Christmas Tree Sale will be set up in City Park on Nov. 28, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. with fresh cut Canaan fir Christmas trees from the Bailey Farm at Bluestone Nursery. Prices ranging from $35 to $50 for live trees depending on size. Pre-orders are also available as Bluestone Nursery works with the Lions Club this year.
Hinton’s Hometown Christmas Saturday, Dec. 5 beginning at 10 a.m. Hinton Merchants & Second Saturdays invite everyone to celebrate the hometown holiday season and enjoy shopping the annual Christmas Bazaar with crafters and artisans in the Summers Middle School gym, the Freight Depot, the Historic McCreery Hotel, and the Mistletoe Market.
