With Thanksgiving behind us, the Christmas season has officially kicked off! Or should I say “blew in”? My gosh, were the winds ever intense this past weekend! Thankfully we hadn’t even attempted to put up any holiday decorations. I think that if we had we would still be chasing them down the street.

But the windy weather did little to curb the enthusiasm of holiday shoppers. Mary O’Keefe and Charly Shelton headed down to the Glendale Galleria on Friday to get a feel of the chaos that reined there. Not surprising, what they found were lots of people, few parking spaces and an abundance of irritation. Then they headed up to Montrose to compare stress levels. What a difference! Not surprising, many of our restaurants and shops were filled with satisfied shoppers but what was absent were the crazed looks on the faces of those on Honolulu Avenue. I hope you’ll take time to stroll down Honolulu Avenue with your holiday shopping list; not only will you find most everything you’re looking for, but on the weekends you may catch a glimpse of Santa, too!

The CV Sheriff’s Station launched its annual Toy and Food Drive as well. If you’re able, I hope that you’ll remember to drop off food and/or toys for those families in need. Collection barrels are being set up around town if they haven’t been already. The generosity of the foothills’ spirit has kept the barrels filled year after year guaranteeing that families who could use help receive it. Keep those families in mind when doing your holiday shopping.

And don’t forget that Honolulu Avenue is the place you’ll want to be this Saturday evening as the Montrose Shopping Park Association presents the 33rd annual Montrose Christmas Parade. If you need help getting in the holiday spirit this year, look no further than Honolulu Avenue and the dozens of floats and entries that will travel down the street. From scouting troops to political dignitaries and everything in between, the Montrose Christmas Parade is a time honored tradition here in the foothills. The offices of Crescenta Valley Weekly are located at the northeast corner of La Crescenta and Honolulu avenues where most of the parade participants have to sign in. From 4:30 to 5:30 p.m. we invite you stop by our office to get some hot apple cider and a snack. Our window facing Honolulu Avenue will be open and a stack of papers will also be available in case you need another copy.

And to further your holiday spirit, check out the annual Prom Plus Holiday Tour of Homes taking place next weekend on Dec. 12. Prom Plus is an after prom event held at the Crescenta-Canada YMCA every year for Crescenta Valley High School seniors and their guests. The cost of attending Prom Plus is included with the purchase of a prom ticket; for non-prom goers, the cost is $20 at the door. From midnight to 5 a.m. the kids can do everything from ride a mechanical bull to climb a rock wall or sing karaoke. The event costs about $20,000 to put on every year. Prom Plus is a charity that I’ve been involved with for over 10 years and the home tour is one of the biggest fundraisers that is held. Four homes will open their doors so guests can check out their holiday decorations. There are refreshments, music and more. Tickets are $25 and can be purchased here at Crescenta Valley Weekly, Merle Norman Cosmetics, the UPS stores in Montrose and La Crescenta, J’s Maintenance, the chambers of Commerce and the high school.

Hope to see you there and along the parade route.

Robin Goldsworthy is the publisher of the Crescenta
Valley Weekly. She can be reached at robin@cvweekly.com or (818) 248-2740.