Lewisville’s 32nd Annual Christmas Parade
This friendly smile and those puppy dog eyes adorned Lewisville’s 32nd Annual Christmas Parade.
Memorable Moments
As stated in my previous blog post, Ho Ho Ho!, I made lots of photos of Lewisville’s 32nd Annual Christmas Parade (held on Sunday, December 11, 2016). Although it took longer than I’d hoped to process all the photos — I confess I’m a bit picky — they’re finally ready to be shared.
Fire vehicles and a marching band make their way through Lewisville as a child with a Santa cap rushes to pick up candy in the street.
I began photographing where the parade started, in front of Lewisville United Methodist Church, and I eventually made my way to Shallowford Square, where I remained until Santa Claus passed by.
While it’s true that I didn’t actually want to walk any further than that, I mainly realized that Shallowford Square, with its border of lighted trees, could provide a really nice photographic backdrop. But enough of this chatter — let’s get to the photos!
Below are just a few of the scenes from Lewisville’s Christmas Parade. A separate photo gallery contains a total of 68 photos. The LINK to the gallery is at the very end of this blog post. I hope you enjoy the photos!
P.S. If you were at Lewisville’s Christmas Parade, feel free to leave a comment and share a memorable moment or two in the Comment Section.
More Parade Photos
CLICK to see MORE PHOTOS of Lewisville’s 32nd Annual Christmas Parade
Day of Celebration
Letters from Home performers, Erinn Diaz (left) and Courtney Groves
The Place to Be
It was great to be back at Shallowford Square on Saturday, August 13, 2016 photographing Lewisville’s 25th Anniversary Celebration. While Lewisville was founded in 1859, visionary leadership from within the community led to the incorporation of the Town of Lewisville in 1991.
Last Saturday, the exuberance, sense of community and down-to-earth spirit I’ve long witnessed in my hometown were once again on full display. Though the August heat was strong, the heartbeat of our tight-knit community was stronger.
Photos…and More Photos
I hope you enjoy the following lineup of photos capturing some of the highlights of Lewisville’s 25th Anniversary Celebration. As time permits, I’ll roll out more photos, including audio of historical re-enactments and musical performances.
P.S. Many thanks to members of the Lewisville Fire Department — which had a medical assist area set up on the Square’s perimeter — for helping me deal with effects of the sweltering heat. You guys rock!
For MORE PHOTOS of Lewisville’s 25th Anniversary Celebration, please continue to the NEXT SECTION. CLICK for more photos of Lewisville’s 25th Anniversary Celebration
Lewisville’s Tree Lighting Ceremony
Folks from the community began arriving at Shallowford Square shortly before 7:00 pm yesterday evening for Lewisville’s annual Tree Lighting Ceremony. The Pavilion was the gathering place for hot chocolate, delicious sweets and friendly greetings.
Families with children made up a large part of the crowd, but all ages were represented, from snuggly wrapped babies on up. Everyone, though, was bundled up on the winter-like evening with dipping temps that kept the hot drinks flowing.
Following a few words of welcome from Joyce Walker, the President of the Lewisville Civic Club, and Cecil Wood, Lewisville’s Town Manager, the crowd was treated to a few classic Christmas songs beautifully sung by Matt Morris.
Next came the moment when Mayor Dan Pugh “flipped the switch” to light the Christmas tree located near the Square’s clock. With that, the Christmas lights in and surrounding Shallowford Square were complete.
But there was more to come, because the most important guest was just arriving. Yes, Santa was whisked in on one of the Lewisville Fire Department’s big trucks. (Apparently, the reindeer had the night off.)
Santa was immediately surrounded by children and their parents as he settled into a comfy chair under the Pavilion. And while he was greeting the children and offering each of them a candy cane, The Night Before Christmas was read over the sound system by Joyce Walker.
As the event wound down, many families finished up the festive evening with a family photo at Lewisville’s Christmas tree.
Photos of this fun event can be seen in Lewisville’s Tree Lighting Ceremony photo gallery.
Halloween Night in Lewisville
The Lewisville Fire Department and Lewisville Baptist Church hosted separate Halloween events Friday evening that were attended by families and youth from Lewisville and surrounding communities. I tried my best to be at both places at once!
At the Lewisville Fire Department, several large inflatable Halloween displays and a costumed Dalmatian mascot drew the curious attention of young trick-or-treaters. After making their way through a spooky maize (constructed of hay bales) and collecting their treats, many families went on a pleasant hayride that circled Shallowford Square and returned to the fire station.
Meanwhile, at Lewisville Baptist Church, trick-or-treaters attending the church’s Trunk or Treat event were greeted by enthusiastic church members offering candy treats — with flare and originality — from their car trunks or truck beds. And as if that weren’t enough, the church then provided free hot dogs, soda, popcorn and cotton candy to its delighted visitors.
With my time being split between the two events, it was a bit of a challenge to try to cover both events well. The main challenge I faced, though, was the diminishing daylight. As the late-evening light gradually faded away, it was increasingly more difficult to get quality shots, even using a flash, which does not always yield the kind of natural-looking images that I prefer.
Representative photos from each of these events can be seen by visiting the links below:
