FAIRMONT - Fairmont Glows is an annual smorgasbord of holiday activities, kicking off Fairmont's Christmas season.
This is the event's 21st year. It begins, appropriately, with the arrival of Santa, who will fly in on the North Pole Express, appearing at 4:05 p.m. Friday at the Fairmont airport.
Santa will stick around in order to participate in the Glows Parade, the highlight of the festivities.
The parade, also known as the Parade of Lights, starts 6 p.m. Friday, stretching from Ward to Lincoln parks.
"We have 78 units - it will be the largest winter parade we've ever had," said Bob Wallace, Fairmont Area Chamber of Commerce director. "... I think people enjoy the holiday parade. It's a lot of neat, lit-up floats ... and we've had mild weather.
"It should be a great evening to watch a parade," he said.
Also taking place Friday evening, food will be served in Citizens Park on Downtown Plaza from 5-6 p.m. prior to the parade. Two local churches will serve meals as well. First Congregational Church at 319 Downtown Plaza will have soup and hot sandwiches from 5-7 p.m., while Immanuel Lutheran Church will have chili and oyster stew from 5-8 p.m.
Friday is the first day the city turns on its Christmas lights.
"We've added more lights to the trees ... but we've had an issue with doing it this week," Wallace said, referring to the heavy snow that fell last week. "We'll see how to it goes. You can't control Mother Nature."
Fairmont Glows doesn't end Friday night. The Glows committee and Fairmont Public Utilities are sponsoring the annual residential and commercial lighting contest. Call (507) 235-5547 by Dec. 1 to enter or nominate an entry in the contest. Judges will determine the contest winners the week of Dec. 6. Winning entries will receive Chamber gift certificates.
Coinciding with Fairmont Glows is the Fairmont Festivals and Events Auction, and there's not much time left to get bids in.
This is the fourth and final week for the online auction. The fund-raiser started Oct. 26, marking the first time the Chamber of Commerce has held the annual auction online over a four-week period. Bids can be placed through 5 p.m. Monday.
In the past, bidders could participate in person and online over a 12-hour period. Taking the event online has cut costs for the Chamber, and it appears to be working well, according to Wallace.
Anyone who doesn't have Internet access has had the option to call the Chamber on Mondays and let the office staff place their bid.
"We've gotten very few phone calls, so it appears everybody's got it figured out," Wallace said.
Proceeds go to local festivals and events that apply for grants, which is another change from past years.
"We don't take the proceeds anymore and use them for our own purposes," Wallace said, meaning Fairmont Glows, which is organized by a Chamber of Commerce Glows committee.
To register and place your bids, go to auction.fairmont.org. Call the Chamber office at (507) 235-5547 with questions.