As the sky evolves from a bright open blue into streaks of hues with pink and orange, Argyle residents and community members surround the silhouette of a towering Christmas tree. As they gathered, joyous conversations and laughs of holiday cheer hushed as their gaze shifted towards a figure standing beneath the tree – Santa Claus. The silence is broken as Santa rings out, counting down from five. As he hollers out “one,” the dark tree silhouette is suddenly lit into a beacon of dazzling lights.
Since 2015, a local environmental and community volunteer organization, Keep Argyle Beautiful (KAB), has been the sole leader in making the annual Argyle Christmas Tree Lighting Festival possible. This year’s event will follow in tradition, beginning on the first Saturday of December, and lasting from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. at the Argyle United Methodist Church.
“Keep Argyle Beautiful’s role in the community event is to oversee the whole festival,” KAB Chairperson Kathy Salisbury said.
The organization began planning the event in September by meeting with the location hosting the tree lighting. The meeting allowed KAB and the host to review their contract ensuring that both parties understand their obligations to the community event. Through this meeting, they both also went over details that will improve upon the festival.
“We will go over what was done the year before, and we’ll go over our notes from the wrap-up meeting that we had in January after the last festival,” Salisbury said.
It’s an important step in the planning process as it ensures the festival has alterations made that will benefit not only the organizers but also the community. The September meeting is vital in each party understanding their role and jump-starting the setup of the event with the help of volunteers and local organizations.
“We have our youth volunteers helping to put up the tree,” Salisbury said. “The churches have been really good about getting donuts, having music, and making it a fun environment for the young men, their moms, and the church staff to put the tree up.”
The Saturday before Thanksgiving, KAB partners with two Young Men’s Service League chapters, the Argyle and Inspire chapters, for the construction process. The young men and their moms work with KAB using a donated boom lift from Sunbelt Rental to construct each level of the Christmas tree. The whole process takes the volunteers four hours to complete the entire tree display. This is just one way that formulating community relations can lead to the success of the event and KAB.
“The Christmas Tree Lighting Festival is the only fundraiser Keep Argyle Beautiful does throughout the year,” Salisbury said. “We received no other funding or donations from any sources throughout the year.”
Local businesses and organization’s participation is the backbone of making the event possible. There are multiple ways to participate, one of which is being a paid sponsor of the event. This helps KAB fund the event as well as receive special promotions for businesses or organizations on all official media material. If a business or organization cannot afford to be a sponsor, but still wish to expand their connection into the local community, they can still participate by having a booth at the event for no charge.
“We try to make it affordable and easy for even smaller startup businesses to participate,” Salisbury said.
Another way businesses and organizations can participate is through providing entertainment to the festival. Businesses or organizations can provide activities, games, or refreshments ensuring that residents can engage and enjoy their time with the community.
“The Argyle Food Bank is there every year with a table collecting food for the food bank,” Salisbury said. “We would be so happy if people participated or even if they couldn’t come, just to drop off some food for the food bank.”
The food bank currently accepts noodles, rice, beans, crackers, cereals, and other dry and boxed foods. Other items they accept are canned foods, condiments, dairy items, baking supplies, laundry and hygiene supplies, and monetary donations. One aspect that puts Argyle Christmas Tree Festival apart from others is the inclusion of more community members through the rotation of festival locations.
“We wanted the whole community to feel part of the town’s tradition and we wanted them all to have a part in the festival,” Salisbury said.
Every two years, the location of where the festival is held changes among multiple hosts within Argyle. Visibility of the tree is always the most important aspect of the Christmas festival, ensuring it is truly a beacon of the community. Currently, KAB is in a transition year with Argyle United Methodist Church hosting the event one last time before the Well Church receives the tree next year.
“I think this event is an important staple in the community, because it’s the longest-running tradition we’ve had in our community, and it’s what brings all of the community together,” Salisbury said.
KAB is always looking forward to expanding its community sentiment with new and unique locations for the event. The public is always welcome to further their involvement with KAB and the festival. Members hold monthly meetings every last Monday of the month at Fire Station 511 located at 511 S. Gibbons Rd. The organization also has a website as well as an active presence on social media showcasing their volunteer projects.
“We’re not trying to make it huge and sell tickets,” Salisbury said. “We just want a good two hours of kids having fun and adults singing along and hugging their neighbors and just having a good time outside, doing a community annual event to put a smile on their face.”
