Window Wonderland kicks off Wooster's holiday season

Main Street Wooster will present Wooster's official welcome to the holiday season with Window Wonderland on Friday, Nov. 22 from 3-9 p.m.

The highlights of the evening’s program include the lighting of the children’s tree on Public Square and the appearance of Santa.

Santa will make his descent from the rooftop of The Briggs & Starr Building at Public Square with assistance from the Wooster Fire Department, following a musical program at 7 p.m. that will feature Summer Stage Wooster. Some elves — The College of Wooster cheerleaders — will assist Santa this year.

In addition, there are free horse-drawn wagon rides, courtesy of Wayne Savings and Spring Mist Farms of Brunswick Hills, and two live reindeer, sponsored by the Commercial & Savings Bank. Children can have their pictures taken with Santa at the pavilion while throughout downtown attendees can get a cup of hot chocolate, coffee, hot apple cider and Lerch’s Donuts at Main Street Bank. There will be ornament making, plenty of music and open houses at most of the stores.

Downtown store windows will be unveiled at 3 p.m., with Summer Stage Wooster Christmas caroling at 6:45 p.m. and the tree lighting ceremony at 7 p.m. Santa will descend from the top of The Briggs & Starr Building soon after, then listen to the Christmas wishes of kids in the holiday tradition.

Other attractions after Santa arrives include the following:

—Horse-drawn carriage rides in front of Main Street Bank on North Market Street.

—Miser Brother Battle: Fire vs. Ice, in front of Uptown Downtown Antiques.

—Toy train rides in front of RE/MAX on West Liberty Street.

—Live reindeer in front of Liberty Commons on East Market Street.

This also is the fourth year of the Great Elf Scavenger Hunt, in which participants grab a passport at participating locations and begin the self-guided tour of downtown Wooster to spot elves and then return the passport to the Main Street Wooster office for a chance to win prizes featuring local merchandise and Downtown Dollars, sponsored by the Apple Creek Banking Company.

In the Window Wonderland contest, downtown merchants compete for advertising prize packages from MCTV, WQKT/WKVX and the Wooster Weekly News.