Colony Christmas coming back to town

PALMER— Colony Christmas is returning at full scale with a weekend full of familiar and new community events and activities.

The Greater Palmer Chamber of Commerce hosts this event with multiple participating groups and businesses that create a fun and festive atmosphere for locals to enjoy every year. The 2020 event was scaled down but managed to retain a majority of the staples such as the ever-popular and highly attended Parade of Lights.

“We’re really excited to bring back to a full, entire event, “ Palmer Chamber Executive Director, Ailis Vann said.

On top of returning with a full lineup of Colony Christmas classics, there are several new community events featured in this year’s schedule. There will also be several craft fairs at multiple locations throughout Colony Christmas.

Vann said they’re featuring hayrides provided by Hamilton Farms for the first time this year. She said they’re also adding the Arctic Olympics, a new series of community games created for attendees of all ages and demographics.

“We’re excited about that. These are just easy, fun things that don’t take a ton of skill. We’re kind of hoping that will be kind of a new Colony Christmas tradition, just silly and fun winter games,” Vann said.

The Palmer Chamber is hosting a charity drive inside the Palmer Depot throughout the Colony Christmas weekend. Those who donate $5 or more to a charity of their choice will receive coupons for local businesses.

Vann said they’re trying to spread more of the activities throughout the weekend and adding more options for people to choose from on Sunday. She said there will be plenty of ways for locals and their friends and family members to enjoy themselves with a full day of festivities around every corner.

“That’s my favorite part, seeing people out and enjoying all of it,” Vann said.

The theme for this year’s Colony Christmas event is “Hometown Holidays,” according to Vann. She said the holiday spirit is always abundant during this cherished community tradition.

“I feel like the holidays bring out the best in people even though it can be a really stressful time,” Vann said. “It’s such a great place to call your hometown.”

Colony Christmas starts on Friday, Dec. 10, and runs all day throughout the weekend.

The Parade of Lights starts at 5 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 11 with a fireworks display following immediately afterward.

“We’re always looking to expand this. We could always use more help. If people want to help us plan this or do an event at Colony Christmas or anything like that, we are always interested in having people come to our meetings and looking for volunteers. We would love to have more help because we can make it bigger,” Vann said.

For a full schedule of events and points of interest, visit palmerchamber.org/colonychristmas.

Contact Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman reporter Jacob Mann at jacob.mann@frontiersman.com