By Jack Brittle, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
On November 23, the Aldershot Village BIA (Business Improvement Area) held their 22nd annual Village Tree Lighting event at 355 Plains Rd. E.
The event featured around a dozen small businesses selling their products at stations set up across the perimeter of the plaza parking lot, as well as kid-friendly activities like face-painting by Beebop the Clown, colouring books, and photo opportunities with Santa.
Ward 1 Councillor Kelvin Galbraith, one of the event’s lead sponsors, had a station set up to chat with residents about questions or concerns they might have regarding the community.
Galbraith said that the tree lighting was one of the first events ever organized by the Aldershot BIA and has been held in the same location since 2002.
“That tree was half the size 22 years ago when we first had to light it up,” Galbraith said. “And now it’s an enormous tree. It costs a lot of money to light it up, but this is the premier event in Aldershot every year. We estimated about a thousand people last year, and we’re on the same path this year.”
Galbraith said that both the plaza where the festivities are held and the one across the street where the tree is located are under redevelopment, which means that the lighting of the tree will have to be moved in a few years.
Galbraith also spoke about the opportunity that the event provides to small businesses in the area.
“Some of these businesses actually have a storefront on Queen’s Road,” Galbraith said. “This Tim Hortons is the one on Plains Road, and they donated all the hot chocolate. But a lot of the vendors are local, and they bring their stuff here, and they have another opportunity to sell and expose their business.”
Burlington MP Karina Gould, who was also at the event, echoed Galbraith’s remarks.
“It’s so important because it gives them exposure,” Gould said. “It brings people to the community. And one of the things I always find about Aldershot is the diversity of small businesses that there are. And Aldershot is really a community on its own. So you can kind of get everything that you need in Aldershot.
The Burlington Food Bank was also in attendance, holding one of their Cram-a-Cruiser food drives in partnership with Halton police. Robin Bailey, the executive director of the Burlington Food Bank, spoke about the origin of their involvement with the tree lighting, saying that they were introduced to the event by Partnering Aldershot, a local network of businesses, non-profits, and churches.
“Right away they welcomed us and were thankful that we wanted to be a part of the community and figure out how we could serve those who needed food in the community,” Bailey said. “And so once we did that, they’ve invited us to the tree lighting and a lot of the events that go on in Aldershot.”
Bailey said that the evening’s food drive was so successful that they needed to use the Burlington Food Bank’s van to store the excess donations.
“It looked like 500 to 700 pounds to me,” Bailey said.
Bailey said that the food bank will also be at a few other events collecting food throughout the holiday season, including the City Hall tree-lighting and Santa Claus and Pinedale parades. Bailey noted that events like the tree lighting allow the food bank to keep their shelves stocked until Easter, when they do more large-scale food drives.
Dominos Pizza Aldershot also handed out free pizza coupons to the first 300 families that brought in donations.
Before the tree lighting at 6:00 p.m., Galbraith and Gould addressed the crowd, and Gould spoke about new legislation that the federal government has just passed.
“I’m thrilled, on behalf of the federal government, to announce that as of December 14th, we are going to be giving a GST holiday for kids’ toys and clothing, food, Christmas trees, and alcohol under 7%,” Gould said.
After counting down from 10, the tree was lit and will remain so for eight to 12 weeks, depending on the weather.
