By Jason KUROSU

As with every year, the collective focus will shift to the holiday season as soon as Thanksgiving dinner plates are scraped off. In Montrose, things will gear up towards the annual Montrose Glendale Christmas Parade that takes place on Dec. 1 and begins with White Friday.

Twenty tons of snow will be pumped onto the 2200 block of Honolulu Avenue to transform the Southern California climes into “a winter wonderland for the kids,” said Montrose Shopping Park Association Promotional Coordinator Linda McMenamin.

The festivities will begin at 5 p.m. on Friday, with live music from the students of Joletta Boghosian of Play Just Right, which provides music lessons for children.

At 7 p.m. the lighting ceremony will begin, from which point the Christmas tree and the town itself will be bathed in lights until January. Glendale mayor Frank Quintero will officially light the tree.

But more than being a simple Christmas celebration, the MSPA also intends White Friday to aid those shopping for Christmas gifts.

“Many Montrose merchants will once again be whiting out sales tax, hosting open houses or offering special discounts or surprises for customers who shop local on White Friday,” said McMenamin. “Just look for the sparkly snowflake in store windows to know who’s participating.”

For example, Maureen Palacios, self-proclaimed “Head Elf” at Once Upon A Time bookstore, is offering two promotions. Palacios is one of the merchants “wiping out” the sales tax on most items in the store, giving shoppers a 10% discount on purchases. In addition, she is dropping prices on several popular items.

“We are inviting people to do their holiday shopping early, avoiding overcrowded malls and shop in fun, festive Old Town Montrose instead,” stated Palacios.

Despite Nov. 23 being the perennial Black Friday, the MSPA hopes the White Friday event will provide a convenient outlet for local residents who need not venture far to get their early Christmas shopping done.

“It’s our alternative to the rushed, impersonal and often chaotic traditional Black Friday,” said McMenamin.

  Mary Okeefe