12 Days campaign to kick-off soon

By Matthew Bernat
Turley Publications Reporter

STURBRIDGE - This month will bring decorations, Christmas trees, store specials and more changes to town in what the Merchants of Sturbridge (MOS) organization hopes will start a new holiday tradition.
At their November meeting members of MOS spoke about their plans – dubbed the 12 Days of Christmas – and also the importance of creating a holiday “destination” for central Massachusetts residents.
Specifically, the goal of this month is to make the town as festive and inviting as possible, said MOS member Sarah Hiser. Eventually the group would like to bill the event as a regional draw on par with what towns in the Berkshires and eastern Massachusetts have accomplished.
“I have a sense – I have a feeling that if we do Christmas right this year, this will become the start of a tradition,” Thomas Creamer, an MOS member and Sturbridge selectman, said.
The 12 Days of Christmas will kick-off with the long-standing tree lighting tradition to be held Dec. 5 at 6 p.m. on the town common.
Another event will include a visit from the Budweiser Beer Company’s Clydesdale team, which will be in town Dec. 19 between 2:30 p.m. and 4:30 p.m. Visitors will get a chance to see the team in the Sturbridge Host Hotel parking lot before they travel through town.
Michael Cimini, of Yankee Spirits, noted the horses were in the area about seven years ago for a summer engagement in Worcester. That event drew close to 10,000 people, he said. While organizers do not expect to draw nearly that many a crowd of a couple thousand is expected to come to Sturbridge because of the team.
Creamer said the Clydesdales were a chance to draw people to town. Hopefully, he said, the efforts of merchants and residents regarding decorations will be enough to bring them back.
“The town is going to look like we actually do celebrate Christmas. It’s a good opportunity to get people back here,” Creamer said.
Adding to the atmosphere will be 12 to 15 foot tall, decorated trees. The trees – which come courtesy of Velvet Greene - will be placed at high visibility sites along Route 20 such as the Visitor’s Center, the Senior Center, The Seraph and Rovezzi’s. The trees will be adorned in decorations and lit up throughout the season.
Also, a MOS sponsored door decorating contest has been put in place to entice business owners and residents along the town’s main roads to spur everyone to help create a merry atmosphere downtown.
In addition to changing the look of the town, merchants hope that keeping their doors open later than usual on select nights and offering goodwill gestures such as free food, caroling and visits from St. Nick will bring holiday cheer to residents.
“The only way to make this campaign a success is if everyone is on board with it. Our hope is to create an old fashioned Christmas here in Sturbridge this year and in years to come,” Hiser said.