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One of the best parts of this time of year are the Christmas parades. Families line the streets and watch as floats drive by. There are musical performances, church groups, high school bands and, of course, Santa Claus himself. The tradition here in America dates all the way back to 1888. The year before, in Peoria, Illinois, the city residents held a parade down the river to celebrate the opening of a new bridge.

In 1888, the Schipper and Block Department Store sponsored a parade that December following the same route. Instead of going down the river this time, different floats and groups marched along the street. And this time, they had a special guest at the end of the parade, just as we do now. Santa Claus was on hand in his sleigh, greeting children and giving out candy.

Christmas parades all over the area

And while I can’t promise candy will be given out, here’s a list of all the Christmas parades happening in our area over the next few weeks. We started on Friday, Dec. 2, with the Keysville Christmas Parade, which made its way through their downtown at 7 p.m. At the exact same time, the Town of Victoria held its Christmas parade, also going through the downtown.

On Saturday, Dec. 3, the Appomattox County Christmas Parade begins at 11 a.m. and the Amelia County parade starts at 4 p.m. On Sunday, Dec. 4, Farmville will have its Christmas parade at 2 p.m., which you can read more about here, and then on Friday, Dec. 9, the Blackstone Christmas parade begins at 6 p.m.

On Saturday, Dec. 10, the Powhatan Christmas parade begins at 3 p.m., with Cumberland County holding their parade one day later, at 2 p.m. on Sunday, Dec. 11. Finally on Sunday, Dec. 18, we’ve got one more in the list of Christmas parades. The Dillwyn Christmas parade will be held at 3 p.m.

Lights come up at Bear Creek

Meanwhile, you’ll have a chance to see plenty of Christmas lights starting on Friday, Dec. 2 at Bear Creek Lake State Park. The park, located at 22 Bear Creek Lake Road in Cumberland, will host their ninth annual drive through light show on Dec. 2-4 and Dec. 9-11. The event runs from 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. each night, with proceeds going to benefit the Cumberland Christmas Mother program. Admission to the event will be a new unwrapped toy or a monetary donation to the Cumberland Christmas Mother.

Additional activities include a free “make your own ornament station, light fare and seasonal merchandise available for a purchase, a s’mores roasting campfire, plus a take-away grilled chicken dinner on Sunday, Dec. 11.

And speaking of dinner, the Buckingham County Christian Fellowship Association will be hosting their annual Christmas banquet on Saturday, Dec. 3. That’ll start at 1 p.m. at the VFW Hall, located at 14405 West James Anderson Highway in Buckingham.

This year’s banquet will be catered for all those who are in attendance. All members are covered, however any and all guests attending will be charged $16.50 per person. Following the meal, there will be door prizes and election of officers for 2023.

For further information contact President Barry Miles at (804) 492-5806 or (434) 315-4181.

Welcome back, WFLO!

You may have read about it in The Herald earlier this week, but if not, I want to say welcome back to radio station WFLO-AM. The station went live yesterday, on air for the first time since last December.

The Cumberland County Landfill Alert Committee, a non-profit organization, will be hosting their regular monthly meeting on Sunday, Dec. 18 at 3 p.m. at 71 Community Center Drive in Cumberland.

It will be a joint meeting with AMMD, the Pine Grove Project and Cumberland County Landfill Alert Committee. The continued purpose of these meetings is to inform Cumberland County residents and surrounding counties about the serious impact this Mega Landfill will have on you and your neighbors, giving you the most current update.

Cedar Baptist Church, located at 3932 Bell Road in Dillwyn, will host their Christmas program on Sunday, Dec. 11, beginning at 5 p.m. This year’s theme will be “Just a Little Christmas”. Following the program, there will be a special guest appearance by Mr. and Mrs. Santa Claus, with refreshments in the church fellowship hall.

Also, mark your calendar. There will be special Christmas Eve services at Cedar Baptist, beginning at 6 p.m.

Brunswick stew and birthday wishes

Buckingham Baptist Church, located at 24234 North James Madison Highway in Gold Hill, will host a free Brunswick stew lunch and time of fellowship on Saturday, Dec. 3. The meal begins at noon, with a free bowl of Brunswick stew. People can also take home a free quart of Brunswick stew.

Browns Chapel, located at 1711 Gravel Hill Road in Dillwyn, will host their annual Christmas program on Sunday, Dec. 11 at 5 p.m. This year’s theme will be “Christ mess and only God can turn a message into a message”. Following this, there will be refreshments in the church fellowship hall.

And finally, this week, happy birthday wishes go out to the following people. Nicole Dickson of Georgia celebrates on Saturday, Dec. 3. Jon Binns of Cumberland and Rhonda White of Fork Union celebrate on Wednesday, Dec. 7 and Dan Roosevelt of Cumberland celebrates on Thursday, Dec. 8.

As always, our thoughts and prayers go out this week to the sick and shut in everywhere.

ANNIE MAY MILES is the columnist for Trent’s Mill. She can be reached at fatcat091@verizon.net.