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November 29, 2008

Festivities planned in Village Holiday Stroll

By KIM SMITH DEDAM

LAKE PLACID — A community gift is being wrapped here in storefront windows trimmed in balsam boughs.

Snowmen and starlight, carolers, bonfires and Santa Claus all have a role in the Holiday Village Stroll, a three-day festival brought by a spirit of giving.

Months of careful coordination melded ideas — from the village shops and theatres, hotels, churches and business owners, recreational centers and restaurants — with a little holiday magic.

The combination promises something for everyone in music, art and making merry.

"Events in Lake Placid are often geared more for spectators," said Mary Jane Lawrence, marketing director at Mirror Lake Inn, who helped coordinate the community-wide holiday weekend.

It's a first time for village business owners who found support everywhere they looked for it, she said.

"But this is something people who live in our communities can participate in, and there's no cost."

Theatres and hotels have organized free events for children, from movies and music to storytelling to making handmade gifts.

With children busy, parents can slowly stroll around Mirror Lake, through village streets where shops, restaurants and offices planned a host of special events next Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

"Everyone has worked together, including the fire department, the school, the village offices," Lawrence said. "Really, everybody has helped put this together."

At Lake Placid Center for the Arts, Executive Director Nadine Duhaime said the coordinated effort has been a blessing.

"I have never worked on a project that involved this much of a collaborative effort. We're all working together to promote each other."

The idea is two-fold, really, to heighten holiday traffic and to provide a festive atmosphere for community celebration, Lawrence said.

Pulling together brings a message of collective support, a bright spot in what has been an otherwise uncertain few months.

Helping pull Holiday Village Stroll events together, Jill Cardinale, owner of The Pines Inn, said there is a business side of things.

"Anything a business owner can do to promote Lake Placid is good for our region," she said.

"But more important is the sense of community. That's the really neat thing we've seen — a coming together to get something wonderful done. It's actually very exciting."

The effort began with an introspective look at marketing. Several of Lake Placid's large hotel properties pooled funds to develop an overall plan, Lawrence explained.

The Lake Placid Marketing Group then put their ideas on paper and brought it to the Lake Placid Business Association and the Visitor's Bureau, Olympic Regional Development Authority and village officials.

A decision was made in unison to focus on one weekend and make it really fun for locals, providing special hotel, shopping and restaurant rates for everyone.

"We decided to create something very family-oriented," Lawrence said, fitting the true spirit of holidays.

Three days of festivities will begin Friday with a skating party and outdoor bonfire at 7 p.m. at the Olympic Center's 1932 rink. Skate rentals and skating are free, Lawrence said.

The Lake Placid Skating Club will provide local entertainment on ice, and complimentary hot chocolate will be served.

From 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. Friday, 10 percent of all store sales on Main Street will be donated to the North Elba Christmas Fund.

Village restaurants have special dinners planned all weekend long, with live music and holiday cheer spilling from their doors.

Dozens of unique treats and a few surprises are in store at Main Street shops on Saturday and Sunday with an invitation for surrounding communities to slow down, take a stroll around the village and explore the community.

Highlights deliver fun for the children and a little freedom for parents. Bands of roving carolers will wander from shop to shop sharing sounds of the season.

At 11 a.m. on Saturday, a Holiday Story Time at High Peaks Resort celebrates with Glenda Mitchell.

"She's an incredible storyteller," Lawrence said.

Live music from WSLP 93.5FM at Mid's Park on Main Street welcomes Santa's arrival at noon, with complimentary cocoa and cookies shared by folks at Lake Placid Kiwanis Club.

A special indoor holiday farmer's market opens at noon at LPCA, where the theater will be showing "A Charlie Brown Christmas" and "Frosty the Snowman" for kids from 3 to 5 p.m. Parents with older children can drop and go, since movies will be supervised.

And from 1 to 2:30 p.m., children can make special holiday gifts out of beaded icicles, gingerbread men and sparkling stars at High Peaks Resort on Main Street with help from area artists courtesy of LPCA.

"These of course can be very great Christmas presents for grandparents," Lawrence said with a lilt in her voice.

The farmer's market, movies, crafts and materials are all free.

Village Stroll festivities continue on Sunday, with area hotels planning "Breakfast with Santa Claus," and shops hosting special sale and gift-giving events.

At 11 a.m., the Palace Theatre presents a free matinee showing of The Polar Express, courtesy of NBT Bank.

Visitors from surrounding communities who want to stroll through Lake Placid and stay overnight will find some very welcoming holiday packages from area hotels, motels and inns.

A Web site listing some of what's planned for the Holiday Village Stroll has been created at www.LakePlacid.com/Holidays.

"We look forward to everybody really enjoying themselves," Lawrence said, "and sharing a little of our holiday spirit."

E-mail Kim Smith Dedam at: kdedam@pressrepublican.com

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