Wel-come Home to Christmas

Hundreds of people lined the downtown square Saturday as the sixth annual Come Home to Christmas celebration warmed hearts throughout the day in what has become a festive holiday tradition.
The evening’s lighted tractor parade was the main headliner, though organizers worked hard to plan events throughout the day giving locals and guests in town for Thanksgiving something to do and enjoy.
“It was a full day of activities from sun-up to sun-down and we’re just really thankful for all the participants, the people who attended the event with their families throughout the day, and the businesses and organizations that contributed,” said Bridgett Svoboda, a member of the Aurora Chamber of Commerce board and lead organizer for this year’s event. “We hope to continue to build on the tradition that’s been established the last six years and make it a day that everybody looks forward to each year.”
This year’s event kicked off earlier than usual with a fun run which drew a field of more than 70 out for a brisk morning run/walk. With temperatures hovering in the 30s, the Jingle Bell Fun Run started and finished on the southwest corner of the square, featuring participants dressed in all sorts of holiday attire.
“It was a fun way to start the day,” Svoboda said. “It was a chilly morning, but I don’t think that stopped anyone from having a great time and we were really pleased with the turnout. We had 75 participants, so for our inaugural year we were pretty happy with that and we hope to make it an annual tradition.”
Evan Hermanson won the 5K with a time of 19 minutes, while Wyatt Luzum was first across the line in the one mile run. The winners of the costume contest were a trio dressed as Grinch characters, including Leslie Kathman as Max, Lisa Hope as Cindy Lou Who and Callie Perry as the Grinch.
The evening’s main event featured 17 lighted displays in three categories. There were some familiar favorites in the field, as well as new and creative entries, including a tractor and wagon resembling a giant cup of hot cocoa.
“Elise and I had the idea to put the tractor and wagon in the parade and then Selena said why don’t we make the wagon a cup of hot cocoa,” Dave Panko explained. “We started brainstorming and from there it just came to life, and then of course the marshmallows had to be the kids.”
Keith Wasem was impressed with what he saw while helping check in the parade entries.
“We’ve seen some really clever new ideas and definitely have some new entries,” Wasem observed. “One was the giant cup of hot chocolate and one entry had a ‘Jesus is the reason’ message, which was very clever. There are also a lot of new light schemes and people are just using a lot of creativity. You see them walking from exhibitor to exhibitor getting fresh ideas and I think the one-upmanship is just superb.”
“We were really pleased with the total participation for the tractor parade,” Svoboda added. “To see the town square filled with people watching is heartwarming, and to have families together and just spending a day enjoying what the community has to offer. The day was great, and the culmination of the tractor parade at the end of the day was perfect.”

Reaction
Two sisters who grew up in Aurora shared their perspective on the day’s events as they grabbed a cup of hot cocoa with their kids while waiting to board the horse-drawn carriage for a ride around the square.
“We like to stay in town after the (Thanksgiving) holiday because we enjoy this event,” said Aurora native Morgan Myers, who now calls Lincoln home. “Having a small-town setting to bring my kids back to, with all these fun activities that are just smaller scale and family oriented, is just so much fun. 
“Every year we’re here for Thanksgiving since this has started we have stayed and we just love the parade,” Myers continued. “It’s just so unique. I show my co-workers photos and they’re like ‘I’ve never heard of a tractor parade with Christmas lights.’ I mean, it’s simple, and the simple things make it memorable.”
Sister Elyse Wheeler was equally enthusiastic about the vibe on the downtown square.
“It almost feels like you’re in a Hallmark movie when you come back because it’s so picturesque with the historic brick (courthouse) and all the decorations,” Wheeler said. “It’s a great interactive experience for the kids.”
Wheeler, who now lives near Stromsburg, said she and her family have begun making it a priority to return to Aurora for its unique small-town celebrations.
“I feel like in the past several years more and more things have kind of happened,” she said, noting that she introduced her sister to her future husband during A’ROR’N Days several years ago. “These events are fun to come back to when you’re grown up, but when you have kids that stuff becomes really special again, like you want them to get a piece of that.”
Come Home to Christmas is scheduled each year on Small Business Saturday with the hope that people will include local stores in their holiday shopping plans.
“This event is awesome as it brings the community together and starts out the holiday season,” said Christine Burner, owner of Small Town Apparel on the east side of the square. “It brings people out into the community to do the Christmas things and then it has them wander in the stores and they see what’s on the square that they might not see on a daily basis. I had a fantastic day today.”
“I think it was a lighter year than it has been in the past, but they were steady and consistent throughout the day according to the retailers that I spoke to,” Svoboda added. “I think we had decent traffic for all the events we had and then also in our retail stores, which is good.”
Svoboda also mentioned that Scott Sahling of Grand Island, a member of the Hamilton Community Band, sang a few songs just before the tractor parade began, which drew some positive feedback.
“That’s something that we’ve wanted to do is just add carolers or some aspect of a live performance,” she said. “We had the Tempo dancers at the Plainsman and having that live performance is wonderful, but then we were pleased to add the singing aspect this year.”
On that note, Svoboda said the Chamber board may be applying for grants to add speakers so that people at all four corners of the square can hear what’s going on.
“That’s something that we hope to improve on in future years because we could use that for A’ROR’N Days, Market on the Square Saturdays, Scare the Square and other things,” she concluded. “So that’s just something we’re looking to do as just another value-added thing for our community.”

Parade results:
“We wish to THANK all those who participated in the Lighted Tractor Parade,” the judges said. “They are all so talented, creative and generous to bring joy to all those who came to watch. The judges had a very difficult decision!
The winners were both magical, but in two very different ways. Toward the beginning of the parade, the Ferris wheel-themed float along with playful additions was a magical fantasy of childhood excitement. A whimsical theme, it was an amazing build with many moving parts that were very entertaining.
Later in the parade, another magical float came along that was beautiful and breathtaking; with simple elegance and a heartwarming message. It portrayed a clear reminder of the meaning of Christmas with the theme “Jesus is the Reason.” 
These two floats stood out due to the amount of time they took to produce, the effort and design. It was difficult to choose just one, therefore we are announcing a tie for first place.”

Lighted Tractor Parade winners:
 Tie for first -- Paul Badgett with the magical Ferris Wheel of Christmas joy and Rod Perry Family with the heavenly “Jesus is the Reason” theme. Third place was the Hot Cocoa and Marshmallows by Dave Panko, the son-in-law of Rick and Judy Orcutt of Aurora
Tractor alone with no trailer:
1st: Logan Jensen representing Aurora Coop with the decorated fertilizer spreader
2nd: Shad Salmon of Aurora
3rd: Matthew Schaffert of Aurora
4-Wheeler Entry Winners:
1st: Brandon McKay of Aurora representing the Cross of Christ Church
2nd: Todd Honas of Aurora 
Other parade entries included: 
* Caden Meyer, driving a decorated 2025 Can-am defender HD10 Limited from Advanced Motor Sports.
* Jalen Daugherty, driving a restored 1952 Harry Ferguson TO-20 tractor from Freedom 1 Garage pulling a decorated trailer featuring the Grinch.
* Lance McKay, driving a decorated 2003 Massy Ferguson 7500 on behalf of McKay HP.
* Caden Svoboda, driving a decorated 4-wheeler.
* Nick Hurlbut, driving a decorated new Case IH tractor from Grosshans International.
* Mitchell Fagan, driving a 1966 John Deere 2510, which had previously been restored by Bob (Ann) Jorgensen.
* Darren Friesen, driving a decorated Ford 2000 tractor owned by Mathew Schaffert. 
* Harrison McMahon, driving a decorated 2023 John Deere 6R175 utility tractor, representing AKRS Equipment.
* Cody Brandt, driving a decorated 1956 Ford 860 Powermaster restored by his grandfather.