Light Up the Boulevard: Holiday parade set for Saturday on Grand Island

Fri, Dec 6th 2024 11:00 am

Story and Photos by Alice Gerard

Senior Contributing Writer

This year’s edition of the Light Up the Boulevard Electric Light Parade and Festival, scheduled for Saturday at Grand Island’s Town Hall, will feature more activities for both children and adults than previous versions of the same event.

“I’m very excited that we are able to grow it into something more this year. It’s a great kickoff for the holiday season,” said event chair Ramcy Rizek, who also serves as a director at the Grand Island Chamber of Commerce, the organization organizing the event.

The event will kick off at 3 p.m. with the festival. Island roads will be closed at 5:30 p.m. in preparation for the parade that will start at 6 p.m. Following the parade, the tree will be lit at Town Commons.

“(The Grand Island Chamber of Commerce) got more sponsors, more people pitching in. We’re doubling the size of our heated tent,” Rizek said. “We’re going to have more vendors, more entertainment for the kids. It’s really inspiring. It’s nice to see this event grow into something much larger, and the plan is to keep doing that, year over year.

“We’re going to have some nice food trucks there, as well. The House of Munch is going to be joining us again this year. We’re going to have Dirty Bird Chicken and Waffles, and Steaksters. And we’re going to have a local kettle corn gentleman. He’s new in the business. He’s excited to make fresh kettle corn outside of the heated tent.”

Rizek, who described the event as “family-friendly,” talked about some of the activities being featured: “This year, we’re going to have Elsa, Anna and Olaf. We’re going to have a magic show by Todd Nelson. We’re going to have a couple of balloon animal makers. We’re going to have about three or four face-painters this year because there was such a demand for that last year. I wanted to make sure we had enough to keep up with the crowds. We’re going to have a couple of henna tattoo artists. There’s going to be a petting zoo. And, also, there’s going to be a few crafters. We’re going to have some Buffalo-themed crafts. (There will be) some bakers, and some local businesses offering candy and stuff to the kids. There’s going to be multiple tables where we are expecting a couple of caricature artists. There will be photo booths and a couple other things.

“It’s something for everybody. A lot of festive vendors and the entertainment and everything else, so it should be a good time.”

In addition to all of the activities, which will take place inside the heated tent next to the parking lot at Town Hall, kids and adults will have the opportunity to meet a few famous people. They include Elsa, Anna and Olaf from “Frozen.” And, of course, the chief gift giver, Santa Claus, will be taking requests in the gazebo next to Town Hall.

The event is “a great way to bring people together,” Rizek said. “I think that events like this really help when it comes to that small-town feeling, where we all stick together and pitch in and just seeing everybody who is willing to help and sponsor the event. There are so many local businesses. It just goes to show that Grand Island is such a strong community. We have a lot of good stuff here locally. That’s the goal here: to get these small local businesses together and really expose them and support them and watch them grow. That’s what the Grand Island Chamber is all about.

“For me, what is exciting is not only the growth, but just the amount of sponsorships and people willing to pitch in this year to help grow this into something more and make this into something special for the kids. We have quite a bit of support this year, which is really nice.”

Rizek said he wanted to thank “all of the vendors. All of our sponsors, especially some of the larger ones” for making the event possible.