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Medford starts holiday season as tree goes up By MELISSA MARTIN Mail Tribune The Christmas season officially begins today in downtown Medford as crews hoist a 40-foot high white fir into the ground at Vogel Plaza. Volunteers who plan the popular Providence Festival of Trees will decorate Medford's downtown Christmas tree with giant red balls, glittering stars and 3,000 twinkling lights. Boise Cascade donated the Prospect-grown tree. Upcoming special events Noon, Wednesday, Nov. 28 - Steven Kaucher performs, Vogel Park Stage. 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 29 - Ack Tak Tay American Indian drummers and dancers, Vogel Park Stage. 5:30 to 8 p.m. Friday Nov. 30 - Artist-designed wreaths, Rogue Gallery & Art Center, 40 S. Barnett. 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday through Sunday, Nov. 30 through Dec. 2 - 10th Anniversary of Providence Festival of Trees, Medford National Guard Armory. 1 to 3 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 1 - Wreath-making demonstrations, Rogue Gallery. Noon to 1:30 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 5 - Holiday no-host luncheon and fashion show, The Louisiana Grill, 17 W. Fourth St., Medford. Local utility companies strung lights up and down Main Street and Heart of Medford volunteers stuffed 7-foot-high Santas. The Santas can be seen climbing brick buildings and staircases throughout downtown. Animated lights will be part of the decorations at Vogel Plaza, part of a $33,000 plan by the City of Medford, Medford Urban Renewal Agency and private businesses to give downtown a new look this season, said Linda Beauchamp, urban renewal administrative assistant. The Christmas tree will be lit during a ceremony on Tuesday, Nov. 27. Chinese lion dancers will be featured in the Christmas parade that starts at 5:45 p.m. on Nov. 27. The parade will begin at Hawthorne Park, follow Main Street and turn on Central Avenue in front of Vogel Park. Medford Police Department color guard will lead the parade. There will be high school bands, a mariachi band playing for Ballet Folklorico dancers, llamas appearing as reindeer and Medford Mayor Lindsay Berryman and City Council members arriving in a mule-drawn carriage. A Medford fire engine will bring Santa Claus to town. At 6:30 p.m., after patriotic music by Shawna Moody and the Sweet Adelines and Christmas music from the Rogue Valley Chorale and choirs from North and South Medford high schools, the Christmas tree will light up. Refreshments will be served. Everyone is encouraged to bring canned food to the event. The nonprofit group ACCESS will have barrels set up at Vogel Park. The Christmas tree lighting ceremony kicks off a month of activities and music on Tuesday and Thursday nights in downtown, said Linda Beauchamp, administrative assistant at the Medford Urban Renewal Agency. Downtown stores will stay open until 7 p.m. on Tuesday and Thursday evenings, Nov. 27 through Dec. 20. Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2001 Mail Tribune, Inc.