When Tom Spaar announced his decision to stop organizing the annual “Hometown Christmas” this October, it looked like the end of a beloved tradition in the Upper Perkiomen Valley. The Hometown Christmas parade was one of the few, if not the last,

of the animal parades in Pennsylvania. It looked like the cherished annual visits with Santa, cookie decorating, and “Mrs. Claus’ Café” serving mountains of cookies were over. But the love for this special Valley tradition apparently had some holiday magic,

because it tugged at the heartstrings and brought folks together to save these wonderful events. “Upper Perk Christmas” will occur on Saturday, December 6th, 2025. The events used to take place on the first Sunday of December, but the change to the first Saturday

allows coordination with the Chamber of Commerce “UPV Winter Tree Lighting Festival.” The parade of animals and people (no motorized vehicles) will begin in Red Hill at 2 PM and will travel on Main Street to East Greenville. Santa will proceed to St. Mark’s Lutheran Church on Main Street in Pennsburg to greet the community children. Activities, including cookie decorating, snowflake making, and Mrs. Claus’ Café, will continue, along with a train display and other activities at the church. Afterward, families will be encouraged to move to the St. Mark’s lawn for the UPV Winter Tree Lighting Festival with vendors, music, food trucks, and activities, along with a visit from the Grinch. This year, the tree is expected to be especially bright! Mr. Spaar did an amazing job getting this event together each year for decades. Those

who are organizing the events this year have just jumped into action – and additional help would be more than welcome. If you have animals, are part of a group that would like to walk in the parade, or if you can help with organizing or running the events,

please send a message to UPVXmas@gmail.com. Together, we can save this wonderful Upper Perkiomen Valley tradition.