Hundreds Gather To Celebrate Community Tree Lighting

BRISTOL, Va. – It’s all about the music.
But it’s the combination of the music, the tradition and the coming together of a community that makes Bristol’s annual Christmas Tree Lighting special, spectators said Monday night.
“It’s really just a tradition for us to come. We’ve been coming for five or six years,” said Beth Stone, of Bristol, Va. She was at Cumber-land Square Park with her husband and their 15-year-old son.
Said Mike Stone: “It’s also the music, which is great. You’re getting a mix of traditional and contemporary.”
The Stone family was one of many who bundled up against the icy winds and snow flurries and came out to the park triangle for the 28th annual hour-long ceremony of song and spirit.
“We’ve been coming since we were little,” said Kayla Daniels, who came with several of her friends. “We used to be in Girl Scouts, and we would come with them. This is sort of a kick-off for the season.”
Each year, the ceremony marks the official start of the holiday season in both Bristols. And for the past three years, the event has been sponsored by Bristol Virginia Utilities.
“We start planning it in September,” said Kyle Hollifield, BVU vice president of marketing. “This year was a challenge because the tree had been damaged because of the drought, so one of our customers donated the new tree,” he said.
In fact, the 30,000 lights glimmering in the night sky were wrapped around two trees – the 50-foot Norwegian spruce that has served as the city’s main tree for the last three decades, and the 16-foot Colorado spruce that was planted next to it last week as its successor.
The crowd gathered around the two trees during the ceremony and sang Christmas songs to the accompaniment of the Tennessee High Marching Band, whose members wore Santa hats.
“It’s a time for all of us to be little kids again ...,” Hollifield said. “It’s just about watching all the people interact with each other as they gather around the tree. It’s a real sense of community.”
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