As the first hints of winter settled over McHenry, the community wasted no time embracing the holiday spirit. Downtown streets glowed with early lights, families bundled up for an evening out and the familiar buzz of celebration returned. On Nov. 21 and 22, the community came together to get in the Christmas spirit, participating in the Cocoa Crawl on Friday, and tree lighting on Saturday.
Annually in McHenry, the celebration downtown brings many people to the streets. Around the time fall transitions into winter, everyone enjoys spending the beginning of the holidays gathering with friends and family.
“I think before the holidays, this just brings the families out, brings everyone together as a community, which I think is obviously very important as the Mayor,” Mayor Wayne Jett says, “but also, more importantly, it brings a little bit of pride of what we do in the city of McHenry. It brings happiness, it brings you cheer and Christmas spirit.”
On Nov. 21 from 4:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. McHenry hosted the Cocoa Crawl and living windows downtown. Live mannequins recreated holiday scenes in downtown store windows. Everyone participating enjoyed a variety of festive drinks and treats on their trail from store to store.
There is no cost to view the living windows, but the drinks and treats are only for the purchased mugs. The cost for a mug was $10 and all 600 completely sold out.
“Over the last couple days, we’ve had a lot of events in the city. Yesterday, we had a Cocoa Crawl event that went around to all the businesses and benefited all those businesses. There were around 600 people, sold out once again,” Jett says. “I think all these people are going and visiting these businesses, going to dinner tonight, visiting and enjoying their night in town.”
On Nov. 22, there were activities galore downtown to celebrate the lighting of thousands of twinkling lights in Veterans park and around the downtown streets. McHenry gets together annually for this event, participating in horse drawn sleigh rides around the park, visiting Santa under the gazebo and playing with games and craft activities provided by McHenry Area Chamber members and Home Depot.
Vocal Warriors lead everyone in carols before the tree lighting.
“To be asked to be here is a huge, huge honor,” Director of Vocal Warriors Derek Galvicius says. “The cool thing is, we told the high schoolers that we wanted them to sing here, but then we asked the middle school directors if they would too. They gave up their time and they brought, another 20 or 30 singers. It helps pave the way for their future.”
The turn-up of these kinds of events shows how strong the sense of community is here in McHenry and how important it is to so many.
“To see a nice 50 degree night with over 1000 people here,” Galvicius says, “it all makes the holidays even better and makes us feel really good that we can perform for people who actually care.”
The crowd’s enthusiasm carried through the evening, and the performers felt the same seasonal joy.
“It’s always a big part of my holiday season to be able to sing,” Vocal Warrior Leah Atkinson says. “I really feel like it makes the festivities so much more happy and jolly, and it’s really fun to see other people smile and be happy about it as well.”
As the final notes of the carols faded and the tree glowed against the night sky, families lingered, taking in the moment. McHenry’s holiday kickoff wasn’t just about lights or cocoa, it was about people coming together. With hundreds gathering downtown and students sharing their voices, the celebrations reminded everyone what makes the season special: community, connection, and a shared sense of joy. With the holidays just beginning, McHenry is already shining bright.