Strathmore Ag Society lights up the night with the return of the Celebration of Lights

By John Watson Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

The Strathmore and District Agricultural Society’s Celebration of Lights was switched on for the first time this year during opening night on Nov. 27 to welcome in the Christmas season.

Ryan Schmidt, general manager of the Ag Society, said the event is the culmination of what boiled down to a year’s worth of planning and effort from the team, as well as all the volunteers who came to help.

“The Celebration of Lights committee works year-round. They start with takedown in January, but then they start repairs on different light panels and start building other panels throughout the year,” said Schmidt. “They work all year long, but it really ramps up in the last four months as we get everything decorated and start putting everything up in the fall.”

The Celebration of Lights committee, chaired by Dave Fraser, consists of about 10 people according to Schmidt, and is joined typically by a group of volunteers about 20 strong.

The event, which has been a staple in Strathmore for now over a decade, is something that expands and becomes more complex every year, as the society puts donations towards new displays as well as maintaining old ones.

“Every year we add. All the money that comes in through sponsorship, it goes to Christmas lights. It either goes to maintaining the existing panels and then we build new panels each year,” said Schmidt. 

This year, the tunnel of lights, a 12 days of Christmas display and a Strathmore Stampede panel are all new additions to the collection.

Also going on is the return of Santa’s Cottage, free wagon rides and the availability of cookies and hot chocolate to event-goers, the latter of which was distributed by the Strathmore Lions Club.

Last year, the Ag Society was unable to host any of their traditional indoor activities due to ongoing COVID-19 health restrictions. 

Though some precautions are still in place this year, Schmidt said he’s just glad to have the event just about back to normal.

“This year was just figuring out how we could do it all under the current restrictions. We’ve got that sorted out and met with Alberta Health and we’ve got a strong plan in place to keep everybody safe,” he said. “Last year, everything had to be outside and that’s pretty simple. It’s pretty safe for everybody, you can keep well apart. For this year, what’s different is the return of the indoor activities.”

Also returning this year is the New Year’s Eve party for families to attend as the year draws to a close. Schmidt said the event is shaping up to bring back many familiar activities, as well as a few new attractions, all for a $2 admittance, though more details on that will be made available at a later date.

The Celebration of Lights Christmas park is open nightly throughout the holiday season for anyone who wishes to view the light displays.