CHAMBERSBURG – Cocoa Crawl is back this Friday, Dec. 6, in downtown Chambersburg. Hosted and organized by the Downtown Business Council of Chambersburg, and sponsored by Valley Agency, Cocoa Crawl lets shoppers and visitors sample more than a dozen hot cocoa at locations throughout downtown.
Visitors to the event can view and participate in the sixth annual Festival of Trees, Sharing of the Heart for the Homeless and Angel Tree to ensure all children have a merry holiday.
For the Cocoa Crawl, commemorative mugs and wristbands to participate go on sale at 5:30 p.m. at the Courthouse Plaza. Individual tickets purchased on the night of the Cocoa Crawl are $10 and include one mug and one wristband. A family package purchased on the night of the event is $15 and includes two mugs and four wristbands.
Advance tickets are available until sold out. Purchase tickets here. Cocoa Crawl kicks off at 6 p.m. and continues until 8. Participants in Cocoa Crawl select the winner by voting for their favorite cocoa.
As for Festival of Trees, Franklin County Visitors Bureau officials invites the cocoa-sampling public to also enjoy the beauty of the decorated trees and more at the Franklin County 11/30 Visitors Center, 15 S. Main St. They will find 77 beautifully decorated trees, wreaths and lampposts in the lobby and Great Room of the Visitors Center. Everyone can “walk the red carpet” for a holiday picture or enter the free drawing for a Franklin County Goody Basket. Kids can color a holiday picture and enter the annual coloring contest.
Plus, there is still time to write a letter to Santa and receive a reply before Christmas. Special on Friday and Saturday, Dec. 6 and 7, all children and those young at heart will receive a Christmas book, “When is Christmas Day,” authored and drawn by Shippensburg resident Brandii Kligge.
As lovely as Festival of Trees is, it also raises funds for the Cumberland Valley Breast Care Alliance by inviting visitors to vote for their favorite tree or bid on one to take home. Votes are four for $1, and bids are up to the individual. When Festival of Trees ends at noon on Dec. 7, the highest bidders win. Franklin County Visitors Bureau officials are hoping to top the funds raised in 2023, which was $7,000.
Again, this year, Franklin County Visitors Bureau is teaming up with Homeless Matters for Sharing the Heart of the Holiday–a special part of Festival of Trees, intended to support community members in need. Sharing the Heart of the Holiday is collecting hand sanitizer, tissues, pens, paper, hats and gloves of all sizes, blankets and linens, sleeping bags, tents, First Aid supplies, socks, underwear for men and women, long-sleeved shirts for men, women and children, sweatshirts and sweatpants of all sizes, coats for men, women and children, toiletries such as body wash, lotion, shampoo, deodorant, toothpaste and toothbrushes, personal care items, clippers, nail files, laundry detergent and cleaning supplies. Items collected from this year’s Sharing the Heart of the Holiday will be used in the homeless day center program, hosted by the Salvation Army in 2025.
New in 2024, Franklin County Visitors Bureau is hosting a Salvation Army Angel Tree. Readers may come select a tag from the Angel Tree, located in the lobby of the 11/30 Visitors Center, and fulfill a holiday wish of a young child or teen. Gifts should not be wrapped and dropped at the Salvation Army, 159 Lincoln Way W., beginning Dec. 9 and no later than Dec. 13.
