On Friday, December 3, Wallingford residents flooded Main Street and Center Street for the Wallingford Holiday Stroll. Festive lights lit up storefronts and sidewalks, and people of all ages greeted store owners and carolling children. The event began 12 years ago as a way for the town to celebrate the holidays and support local businesses. Since then, the Holiday Stroll has come to be known as an annual community gathering filled with fun events, great deals, and storied rituals.
Last year, the stroll didn’t take place as businesses could not open their storefronts or welcome customers inside. Now that businesses are back open, the stroll aims to celebrate and revive small businesses looking to welcome back customers. Forgoing the stroll meant not only missing out on a fun community event, but also a large body of clients.
This year, the Holiday Stroll garnered greater attention than expected. Ms. Chris Olin, Co-founder of Hidden Gem On Main, a store that aims to support local artists and fair trade said: “I found that the crowd was larger. It was a big party, people were so happy to be out together. Families and friends, the weather was great, so it was … wonderful, there were kids of all ages. We had our heater outside, so people were also able to sit, and we had coffee, tea, and hot chocolate that we gave away to whoever wanted it.”
“Seeing everyone out and going to shops hasn’t happened in a long time, and it was really nice to see that,” said Hadley Rogers ’22, a resident of Wallingford. Some noted that the larger crowds may also be due to the relaxed Covid-19 guidelines; this year, masks were optional, and a limit of no more than 100 people were allowed inside a store at one time.
With the return of the big crowd came the return of many traditions. “The stroll had a DJ at the Fishbein Park, free kettlecorn for the community, chestnuts being roasted, and food trucks selling hot chocolate and coffee,” said Ms. Michelle Bjorkman, Head of the Wallingford Parks and Recreation Department, a co-sponsor of the event.
Another tradition that fosters camaraderie between businesses, clients, and the general community is the raffle. Businesses that are a part of the stroll donated gift cards to be auctioned off, along with the larger prizes — three gift baskets containing goodies from the businesses that participated. For many smaller establishments, it was also a time to hand out some special holiday treats and sales.
Ms. Olin said, “It wasn’t really the time for us to do another sale because we already had a couple of really good big day sales, but we did have a raffle. We did offer discounts, but they weren’t storewide. It was more like if you found a magical candy cane with 25% off, you could use that towards your purchase.”
The small-town nature of Wallingford fosters this tradition, Ms. Olin concluded, “Wallingford is a wonderful community town, and that’s what I believe the drive is, to really help support the small businesses in town. You have really big box stores like Walmart on Route 5, but the stroll is a way for the community center to come together.”
