Reidsville kicks off the holiday season celebrations with unseasonable chill

Jack Frost was nipping at the noses of Christmas parade-goers Saturday evening in downtown Reidsville.

The frigid weather, the illuminated Christmas tree at mural park, and Santa and Mrs. Claus bringing up the rear in their sleigh made Saturday night feel like the beginning of the holiday season.

“We love seeing the children and the expressions on their faces. It means a lot to us,“ said Doris Meacher. She and her husband, Ray, have played the part of Santa and Mrs. Claus in the Reidsville Christmas parade the past five years. Riding in their sleigh with them this year were their Chihuahua, Melodie, and their Chinese pug, Ebony. NewBridge Bank sponsored Santa and Mrs. Claus’ float this year.

While Santa and Mrs. Claus marked the end of the parade, the grand marshal, N.C. Agriculture Commissioner Steve Troxler, headed the parade, which began at 6:30 p.m. at Pennrose Mall and made its way down Scales Street into the downtown area.

Troxler rode with his wife, Sharon, and family in the “It’s Got to Be N.C.“ grocery cart. It was their second Christmas parade of the day; they rode in Raleigh’s Christmas parade Saturday morning.

“It’s a lot of fun and the children really enjoy it,“ said Sharon. “It (the grocery cart) has a 427 engine and it rumbles and it has an air horn.“

Troxler showed his pride in North Carolina agriculture with four different varieties of Christmas trees in the grocery cart, and a Christmas tree hat with lights. He said the purpose of the cart is “to advertise North Carolina agricultural products.“ The sign on the back of the grocery cart said “Buy N.C. Christmas trees.“

“The Christmas tree industry is part of N.C. agriculture,“ said Troxler. “This will be three out of four years that we have put the Christmas tree in the White House.“

No Christmas parade would be complete without music and dancing. The Reidsville High School marching band pumped up the crowd with their rendition of “We Wish You a Jazzy Christmas.“ The Rockingham County High School marching band performed traditional Christmas favorites.

“It’s a Christmas medley with all the popular ones mixed together. It’s a good mix of classical and popular,“ said Donald Dohm, band director.

Melanie Paschal’s Dance Creations of Eden and Academy of Dance of Reidsville provided high-energy dance performances for the judges. Melanie Paschal’s Dance Creations danced to “Who’s got the Flava?“ from the Mickey Mouse Club.

“It’s real kid-worthy,“ said Melanie Paschal-Wiles, dance studio owner. She said this is her studio’s 14th year participating in the Reidsville Christmas parade.

“We’ve been practicing this routine for about three weeks,“ said Ashley Meeks, a senior dancer at Melanie Paschal’s Dance Creations. “We just have a lot of fun. It’s really fun because you get a lot of energy from all the people.“

Paschal-Wiles said she enjoys the Christmas parade, but she would like it to go back to the daytime because it’s hard to get all of the young dancers to a nighttime parade.

Academy of Dance did a tap and a jazz dance to “Boogie Wonderland,“ a song from “Happy Feet.“

“It’s great. I can get real jiggy with it,“ Jacob Barker, 8, a dancer with Academy of Dance, said. Barker’s dad decorated the float with illuminated blow-up penguins to go along with the dance theme. Barker kept warm by wearing four layers of clothing for the Christmas parade.

“This is the coldest year that we remember,“ said Debbie Moore of WGSR Star 39 News. This is the third year that Star News has sponsored and coordinated the Reidsville Christmas Parade. Moore said she thought the cold weather made it feel more like Christmas.

“Last night I was pumped. I was ready to go Christmas shopping,“ she said.

Sheriff Sam Page agreed; he said the weather has to be cold to have a good Christmas parade. Page rode his mule, Roscoe.

The crew from GP Fabrication of Reidsville rode their festively decorated four wheelers in the Christmas parade.

“That’s everybody’s hobby - to go out and ride four wheelers,“ said Joyce Rakes, whose husband, Steve, and son, Steven, work for GP Fabrication. Rakes said participating in the Christmas parade was her daughter Caroline’s idea. Caroline rode in a golf cart in the parade.

GP Fabrication also had a truck with the company’s sign and a Christmas tree and Frosty the Snowman in the back. Before the parade, the GP Fabrication staff had a tailgate party in the Pennrose Mall parking lot. The staff had so much fun at this year’s parade that they plan to participate again.

“Next year, I’m going to get the guys to fabricate a metal Christmas tree,“ said Rakes.

Companies, Cub Scout packs and church groups all participated. All in all, the parade had about 60 entries, according to Star News.

The Christmas parade wasn’t the only holiday event in downtown Reidsville this weekend. The downtown merchants had a holiday open house Friday and Saturday to get people in the spirit of holiday shopping.

The Downtown Crafters Mall has an all-new Christmas shop. Mary Nahas, owner, asked each crafter to make something special for the Christmas shop. The handcrafted items in the shop include block lights, snowmen solar garden lighthouses, wreaths, Christmas tree ornaments, crocheted angels, embroidered lace pillows, monogrammed Christmas towels and pocketbooks and an old-world Santa Claus. Nahas said a steady stream

of customers browsed and shopped in the crafters mall Friday evening.

“I’m seeing a real change in downtown. It’s really coming to life. More and more people are understanding the value of buying local,“ she said.

Nahas had fun playing the guitar and singing Christmas songs at the Backstreet Buzz Coffee House with Steve Moran on Friday evening. She said she plans to play her guitar and sing Christmas carols for her customers in her crafter’s mall during the holiday season.

Friday evening’s holiday festivities in downtown Reidsville included horse and carriage rides. Diana Moran, coordinator of the Reidsville Downtown Corporation, said the line began at the Backstreet Buzz Coffee House, so people were able to get something hot to drink while they waited. The Christmas tree lighting at mural park was the highlight of Friday’s holiday festivities. The tree was illuminated with white lights.

“It was absolutely beautiful,“ Moran said. “It was cold, so it really felt like Christmas.“

Teresa Phillips, owner of Everyday Art in downtown Reidsville, thinks the light snowfall Friday morning helped get people in the holiday spirit. Phillips said she was pleasantly surprised by the number of holiday shoppers that came through her doors Friday evening.

“We have people saying, ‘Well, it just puts us in the spirit of the season,‘“ said Phillips. She cheerily served hot wassail to her customers at this weekend’s holiday open house. During the holiday season, Phillips will also offer her customers samples of Eden gourmet cook Lisa Shively’s dip and spice mixes. Also for holiday shoppers, Everyday Art offers jingle bulbs, burned out light bulbs that are hand-painted and used as Christmas ornaments, Christmas tags made from Christmas cards and hand-painted Christmas glassware at 20 percent off the original price.

Staff writer Miranda Baines can be reached at or 349-4331, ext. 35.