It’s a common theme this time of year as stores decorate their aisles with ornaments and tinsel as soon as Halloween is over.
The town of Ellerbe has already begun decorating for Christmas as it prepares to host its Hometown Christmas downtown Dec. 3 at 5 p.m.
Hamlet is putting up its decorations next week so they can have everything in place before the Thanksgiving holiday.
The town likes to get the majority of its decorations up so when they return from Thanksgiving, they’re ready for the annual tree lighting ceremony, this year on Nov. 30.
This year’s Christmas parade, sponsored by the Hamlet Rotary is scheduled for Dec. 10.
Also this year is the Hamlet Business Development Association’s Old-fashioned Christmas, which will kick of Dec. 3 at 7 p.m. with Christmas at the Depot with a performance by the Out of Bounds Barbershop Quartet and an old fashioned sing-along. The Old Fashioned Christmas will also include a Cruise-In and Antique Car Show at Main Street Cafe Dec. 4 at 6 p.m., and will end Dec. 6 at 4 p.m. with caroling at the Depot Park.
The town of Rockingham will begin to put up their banners in the next few weeks and the town will host its annual Christmas on the Square Dec. 5 from 10 a.m.-4 p.m. including arts and craft vendors, a pet contest and Santa Claus. A free Kids Zone will include a super slide, castle jump, rock wall climbing and a train. There will also be a canned good collection drive for Our Daily Bread.
And while most of the municipalities are on a more seasonal schedule with their decorations, retailers start planning for this time of year well in advance.
Patsy Anderson, owner of Anderson’s Hallmark said her store starts selling Christmas ornaments in July, and the weekend of Nov. 7 was the store’s holiday open house.
“That was very successful,” she said. “We were very busy. The holidays start really early at Hallmark, but that’s at any Hallmark store.”
Anderson said she had her boxes and Christmas wrapping out in October, and all of the Christmas cards went out on the shelves two weeks ago.
“By the end of October all of Christmas is pretty much out,” she said.
She said Hallmark as a whole typically follows this same holiday schedule every year, but this year the Holiday Open House was scheduled a little earlier to get people excited about the holidays before they began preparing for Thanksgiving.
Barbees Jewelers also starts preparing for their holiday season early, beginning the end of May, first of June. Jim Barbee said that’s when he and his staff begin going to buying shows to get ideas and pick out merchandise to carry in the store for Christmas.
But Barbee said he’s a little more traditional when it comes to decorating for Christmas and he doesn’t decorate the store until after Thanksgiving.
The McLaurin Center in Hamlet is also getting a jump start on it’s wreath, tree and garland sale this year with samples ready to be viewed beginning Nov. 13th.
The center is offering wreaths, trees and garland from Mistletoe Meadows Christmas Tree Farm, Winner of the 2007 National Christmas Tree Competition and provider of the White House Christmas Tree in 2007.
Orders can be placed until Friday. The McLaurin Center is located at 10 N. Bridges St., in Hamlet and can be reached at 582-0934.
The annual Marine Corps’ Toys For Tots campaign also kicked off in October and toys can be dropped off at Belk, Big Lots, CVS Pharmacy, all Dollar General locations, Dieffenbach GM Superstore, Ellerbe Pharmacy, The Golden Rule, Grant’s Auto Express, Huddle House, J.C. Penny, Kerr Drug, Lowe’s Home Improvement, Marshall’s Office Supply, Richmond Academy, Richmond Senior High School, RBC Centura Bank in Hamlet, the State Employee’s Credit Union, Wal-Mart, Walgreens and most local churches.
n Staff writer Eren Tataragasi can be reached at (910) 997-3111 ext. 19 or at etataragasi@yourdailyjournal.com.
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