It may not have felt like a Christmas celebration with temps reaching into the 50’s this past Saturday in Boothbay Harbor, Maine; but the fall-like weather was no match for the magic of the holiday spirit that radiated from the streets and harbor and captured hundreds of festival goers that day. That magic began early Saturday morning when Santa, Mrs. Claus and the Elves spread their holiday cheer to the residents of St. Andrews Village, Greens Landing and St. Andrews Hospital.
Meanwhile, downtown in the Whale Park folks watched in anticipation as lobstermen tied up at the town dock to decorate their boats for the lighted boat parade. Y Arts arrived at the park at noon and entertained the growing crowds with a wonderful selection of holiday melodies. Just before Santa and his gang arrived by boat, the Y Arts crew pulled the winning ticket for their $10,000 raffle {a fundraiser to support the Y Arts Program} and made local resident Scott Campbell a very happy man!
Then, as the crowd drew its attention toward the harbor, they caught a glimpse of what they had all come for; the US Coast Guard guiding Santa and his helpers to shore. They stepped off the Novelty boat, headed up the ramp past cheering fans and boarded the horse drawn wagon to Santa’s Workshop (aka Gimbel’s Country Store), where cocoa and cookies were served while children enjoyed lap time with Santa.
Visitors too large for Santa’s lap headed off to enjoy the many other festivities happening around town, like the festival of trees at the Opera House, an open house at Studio 53 Gallery and Boothbay Region Arts Foundation, a Craft show at the BBH Fire Department, a Christmas fair at the BBH Congregational Church, lunch at McSeagull’s Restaurant and, of course, all of the excellent local Christmas shopping!
At 3pm folks began to gather on the library lawn to enjoy music by the Hollowell Community band, along with important folks like the Three Wise Men, Santa, Mrs Claus and all of the Elves. At dusk, Santa lit the tree with his magic wand and a crowd followed the Three Wise Men across the footbridge to Our Lady Queen of Peace for the Live Nativity Scene.
When darkness fell, spectators congregated once again at the Town Landing to watch in awe as 15 beautifully decorated boats circled the harbor. It was a sight to behold and a fitting grand finale to a day that could only be summed up as Holiday Perfection!
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