BALLSTON SPA — The Village of Ballston Spa will stage its annual Holiday Parade and Tree Lighting Friday, Dec. 2 on Milton Avenue.
A home-town style tradition, this December favorite typically draws hundreds of spectators to Ballston Spa to watch the brightly decorated floats, fire trucks and community groups parading through the village. The parade steps-off at 6:30 p.m. on the north side of Milton Avenue and proceeds to West High Street. Following the parade, Mr. and Mrs. Claus will arrive on the back of an Eagle-Matt Lee Fire Company truck to light the tree in Wiswall Park.
Parade entries will be judged this year in the following categories: Best Emergency Vehicle Entry, Best Float Entry, Best Walking Entry, and the Brightest Light Award.
The parade will once again spotlight the Toys for Tots campaign, in partnership with the Ballston Spa Community Emergency Corps, Saratoga County Sheriff Department and the U.S. Marine Corps. Volunteers from these organizations will be on hand to collect donations of new, unwrapped toys from spectators along the parade route as well as at the tree lighting.
The parade headlines a holiday themed “First Friday” in Ballston Spa. Home to unique shops, museums, and popular restaurants, Ballston Spa pulls out the stops for December’s First Friday by filling the village with a merry atmosphere. Many businesses will be open with special holiday activities and specials, while Ballston Spa High School singers and musicians as well as Union Fire Company band members perform carols on the street corners. Visit www.ballson.org
