Golconda Hometown Christmas Celebration

Main Street Golconda is launching a fundraising campaign to bring a giant Christmas tree to Pope County as part of the new Golconda Hometown Christmas Celebration.

We hope to purchase an all-weather Christmas tree that will tower more than two-stories tall. It will be put up on the lawn of the historic Pope county courthouse each year.

The Christmas tree will also be the focal point of a new hometown Christmas celebration to be held in December and bring a source of joy for southern Illinois during the holiday season.

“One of our board members eats, sleeps, and breathes Christmas all year,” said Nathan Ryder, President of Main Street Golconda. “Seriously, she has a countdown on her cellphone to Christmas Day all year and she mentioned that a Christmas celebration seemed like the next best thing to add to our festival calendar.”

“We want to create a new event that will draw people in from all over southern Illinois to kick-off the Christmas season,” Ryder said. “We want to see folks come to Pope County, stay in any one of our lodging options, dine with us and see a unique tree-lighting ceremony that can instill some of that seasonal magic.”

Main Street Golconda will cover a majority of the costs to purchase the tree with proceeds from last year’s Shrimp Festival.

We’re seeking donations and sponsorships to help complete the fundraising campaign to bring the tree to southern Illinois. Sponsorships and donations are tax deductible and will help Mainstreet continue with our community outreach activities in Pope County.

There are several sponsorship levels available to corporate and private donors who would like to contribute to the purchase of the Christmas tree. People interested in donating toward the purchase can learn more about the sponsorship levels here.

Donations can be made online or by filling out the Christmas tree sponsorship form and mailing it back to the Main Street office.

If you have questions about the fundraising campaign or the Christmas festival, send us an email by clicking the button below: