The Franklin County Visitors Bureau invites the public to enjoy 51 trees and 18 wreaths during the final week of Festival of Trees at the Franklin County 11/30 Visitors Center, 15 South Main Street in downtown Chambersburg. Decorated trees and wreaths are displayed in the elegant lobby and second floor Great Room of the 11/30 Visitors Center, which was formerly the 1865 National Bank of Chambersburg and functioned as a bank until 2015. Two old vaults are decorated for the holidays. One shows a village covered in snow and ready for Christmas. The other is the video vault, decorated like grandma’s house and showing old-fashioned Christmas specials, like “Frosty the Snowman” and “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer.”
Festival of Trees offers a chance to view the trees and wreaths, vote for your favorite, and even bid to take one home. All proceeds of voting and the auction will benefit the Cumberland Valley Breast Care Alliance. Take a sneak peek here. December 2 is the final day of Festival of Trees. Voting closes at 7:45 PM, so votes can be counted to announce the tree and wreath with the most votes as well as the winners of each tree.
Other Festival of Tree activities include:
- Cumberland Valley Model Railroad Club Christmas train display.
- Accepting donations for Sharing the Heart of the Holidays items, all to benefit Franklin County neighbors that need a little extra help this holiday season.
- Coloring contest for children with a first prize of $50 and three honorable mentions of $20. Stop in at the visitors center to color the picture, or download it here and drop it at the visitors center.
- Take-away crafts–a new one for each day of Festival of Trees.
- Letter-writing to Santa, followed by a reply from Santa.
- Drawing to win a Franklin County Holiday Basket with locally crafted arts, holiday ornaments, local foods, tickets to a 2022-23 Capitol Theatre show, and much more. Total value exceeds $400.
- Santa will visit the 11/30 Visitors Center from 5 PM to 7 PM on December 2. Stop by for a photo or just to say Merry Christmas!
December 2 is First Friday throughout downtown Chambersburg. It is Candle Night. Luminaries will line the downtown streets as Christmas lights glisten above. Chambersburg Council for the Arts is hosting a luminary walk, beginning at 5 PM. Brussels Café, 55 North Main, is holding a Christmas Market from 1 PM to 8 PM with artisan vendors, Ugly Sweater Contest at 6 PM, and carolers in Chambers Fort Park from 7 PM to 7:30 PM. The Cocoa Crawl is back, too. Special Cocoa Crawl mugs go on sale at 5:45 PM and cocoa tasting begins at 6 PM at participating merchant–including Black & Blush Boutique, ReMix, Franklin County Visitors Bureau, Hammer & Stain, Denim Coffee, Cheerful Flowers & Gifts, YP Jewelers, Boost Mobile, and Willow & Birch. Many downtown merchants have specials, doorbusters, and giveaways.