It can be hard to think (or stress) about the holidays during August’s lazy warmth. But like it or not, summer is on its way out and the festive season lurks just around the corner. Crafters, artisans, mom-and-pop shops and local small businesses are already ramping up with gifts galore. If you’re a maker, sign up now to sell your goods at the annual Lacey South Sound Chamber’s Holiday Fest on November 2, 2024.
Party-goers, hosts and organizers of autumn weddings, office parties and birthdays come ready to sip, savor and shop amidst friends, neighbors, live entertainment and even tasty food trucks.
Sip, Savor and Shop at the 4th annual Lacey South Sound Chamber’s Holiday Fest
Chamber Event Manager Cheryl Sparkuhl says that Holiday Fest, now in its fourth year, is special because it connects businesses together with our community. Their team annually welcomes more than 500 shoppers and now’s the time for vendors to reserve a spot.
To book a table to display and sell their wares, Sparkuhl says business owners should sign up online before October 18. The application form is also where companies can donate an item to the raffle, but you don’t have to be a vendor to contribute to the fundraiser. If you’d just like to offer an item for the Kidwiler-Dolan Scholarship program raffle, simply fill out the procurement form and drop things off by October 25.
Holiday Shopping, Food Trucks, Live Music and Fundraising for Scholarships Under One Roof
Shopping locally truly benefits the entire community. Not only is it environmentally friendly, as items can be made, sold and enjoyed with a minimal carbon footprint, but crafters are part of a vibrant and healthy ecosystem. Forbes research shows that: “Small businesses create jobs locally, which helps to ensure the money remains within the community. Further, independently owned, local businesses are estimated to circulate three times the money back into their local economies than ‘big box’ or chain businesses.”
This is done by contributing jobs, keeping tax monies close to home and building on a region’s uniqueness of everything that makes it special, which is exactly what Holiday Fest was created to celebrate.
Monies raised during Holiday Fest’s raffle benefit the Kidwiler-Dolan Scholarship Foundation. Auctions like this are the primary source of income for these much-needed scholarships that benefit local North Thurston High School seniors.
Add Holiday Fest to Your Family’s Fall Fun Calendar Today
Families know that once summer is in the rear-view mirror and school’s back in session, the calendar fills up quickly. Make sure to add Holiday Fest early so you don’t miss out. In addition to shopping and the new-this-year food trucks, there will also be plenty of fun.
The day’s event calendar includes performances by the North Thurston High School jazz band, both Melodies in Motion and traditional square dancers, baton twirlers and martial arts masters. The Lacey South Sound Chamber will host a hot chocolate and beverage booth to raise money for the scholarship foundation.
Holiday Fest runs from 9 a.m. until 3 p.m. on Saturday, November 2, 2024 at North Thurston High School. Vendor tables are $125 for Lacey South Sound Chamber members and $150 for nonmembers but it’s free to attend for the public.
The Lacey South Sound Chamber: Community First
If your business would like to join the Chamber, simply check out their member application page. The organization’s goal is simple. Chamber staff and its Board of Directors are dedicated to advocating, guiding and supporting local businesses and the Chamber’s most fundamental mission is to generate more business activity for the community. The Chamber initiates business-to-business commerce and provides opportunities for connecting local professionals.
Their calendar of events is full of open houses, informative classes, civic get-togethers, forums and more. Check out their annual Business Awards, Golf Classic, the South Sound BBQ Festival and Read Around Lacey and consider signing up as a participant or sponsor. You can follow them on Facebook and Instagram for updates, additions and sneak peeks.
Technically Columbus Day, Veterans Day, Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Years are the only official, day-off-work federal holidays from October through January 1, but we all know better. Comparing calendars for get-togethers often means shifting things around to accommodate school schedules, sports practices, away games, office deadlines—and office parties—and all manner of celebratory fun.
Save yourself a headache and take care of the shopping before things get hectic. Thanks to the Lacey South Sound Chamber’s Holiday Fest, you can cross everything off your list and enjoy the parties without a care in the world…shopping-wise, at least.
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