In Malad (and Holbrook, Samaria, Pleasantview, St John, Cherry Creek, Daniels, Woodruff, and you know the drill…) holidays often involve a lot of going out of town to shop.  As most of you know, the I-15 to and through Pocatello is a nightmare right now, and Idaho Falls is a nightmare all shopping season long.  To go to Logan you have to go through a big stretch of Utah, which you will STILL be in after you get there.

Luckily, the Annual Hometown Christmas Festival will be in town to meet some of your holiday gifting needs.  There will be a large variety of vendors at the Fair, as well as visits from Santa Claus himself, and his friend(?) the Grinch.

The Annual Hometown Christmas Festival will be held on Friday, November 28 from 11:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. and Saturday, November 29 from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. at the Oneida County Event Center.  There will be a number of events during the two day Festival:

Children will be able to decorate Christmas stockings each day from 12:00 p.m. to 2:00 p.m.  

Children can also drop off a Christmas Card to Santa in “The North Pole Mailbox.”  There’s every chance in the world that Santa will send back a response, provided the writing is legible!  

There will be a lunch on Saturday from 11:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m., which will include soup and rolls, as well as drinks.

Every half hour during the event, a drawing will be held for a free gift from one of the vendors on site (must be present to win).  

On Saturday, children can have their pictures taken with Santa and the Grinch while their parents shop.

Proceeds from the event will be given to local veterans organizations.

The wide range of items which are confirmed to be at the event include: vanilla, handcrafted local artisan items, western designer clothes, goat milk, designer soaps, nails, wood designer items, baby items, kitchen crafts, handcrafted earrings, homemade candy treats, western wreaths, honey, Christmas décor, children’s educational games, native designs, repurposed wool, car fresheners, handmade Christmas cards, freeze dried local fruit, stonecrafted jewelry, hand-crafted T-shirts, and a lot more.

So as you plan your closer-to-last-minute-than-you’d-like gifts for the year, certainly plan to put the Hometown Christmas Festival on your list.  As organizer Vickie Ingram noted, “I think it’s going to be really good.  It should be fun!”

There are quite a few holiday events on the December calendar, including both devotional and Santa-based ones.  The Hometown Christmas Festival makes for a great spot at the end of November to get a start on the season as soon as the plates are cleared from Thanksgiving.   

Last year was the first year of this incarnation of the Hometown Christmas event, and saw a good turnout of local shoppers, as well as some from the surrounding areas.  This year, the number of vendors and the activities planned suggest an even bigger, more packed event.  See you there!