Last November, students from Good Shepherd Catholic School stood in the Northampton Recreation Center parking lot and sang carols in front of a large tree. When they finished, the tree was lit and the crowd cheered. A few minutes later, Santa came in with a Northampton Fire Department escort and told the children about his trip down from the North Pole. That's how The Home News described the evening in its recap of the first Northampton Hometown Holidays on Nov. 22, 2025.
The second year follows the same order. Hometown Holidays 2026 starts at 1 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 21, and the tree is lit at 7 p.m., six hours later. Which part of the day you come for will shape your Saturday.
How a Main Street tradition ended up at the Rec Center
Northampton's tree lighting used to happen on Main Street. In 2024 the borough moved it to the Recreation Center. In 2025 the borough expanded it into what Mayor Anthony Pristash called a "Christmas Village." The tree at the new site stands permanently outside the Rec Center. It also came with a parking lot big enough for the 2025 event to hold several hundred residents, more than 30 vendors, bounce houses, fire pits and a stage.
The Home News reported that the first edition took a year of planning by borough staff. Borough Secretary Bernadette Singh and borough employee Meaghan Case led the effort, along with Assistant Borough Manager Jerry Serensits and Borough Manager Brian Welsko. Local sponsors that year included Horwith Trucks, the Alliance Volunteer Fire Company, DRC Technologies, the Northampton Borough Municipal Authority, Crayola, the Northampton Exchange Club, USA Salvage and local Scout troops. At the end of the night, the mayor promised the crowd that "We will be back again, even bigger and better."
In his November column in the Northampton Press, Pristash makes the same promise for this year. He credits borough staff, "led by Meaghan and Bernadette," with building it into "a truly seasonal, traditional borough event."
Six hours, with the tree at the end
The borough's announcement lists the basics. The event runs Saturday, Nov. 21, 2026, from 1 to 7 p.m. at the Northampton Recreation Center, 1 Lerchenmiller Drive. The mayor's column adds that everything happens in the Rec Center parking lot, the tree-lighting program starts at 5:30 p.m., and the tree is lit at 7.
The same column opens with a reminder that in November "it's dark by 5 p.m." That means the afternoon divides in two. About four hours of the event happen in daylight and dusk. The last two hours happen in the dark, and the program and the lighting fall entirely in that second half.
The borough and the mayor have named what fills each part:
- Kids' activities. Horns & Hooves Mini Moos is bringing miniature cows. Tootsee and Friends will do face painting and balloon animals. The mayor's column also lists bounce houses.
- Shopping. Local artisans, crafters and small businesses will sell handmade gifts and holiday decorations, and food vendors will sell seasonal treats.
- Photos. Jackie Pursell Media LLC is handling holiday photography. Santa will be at his village near the tree, and the mayor encourages families to stop by for a photo with him.
- Stage. The mayor promises "great music, young singers and performative dancers."
- Fire pits. The mayor mentions "cozy firepits" for anyone who wants to sit and enjoy the cold air.
The day has three fixed times: 1 p.m., 5:30 p.m. and 7 p.m. If you have small children who are done by dinnertime, the early afternoon gives you the Mini Moos, face painting and the Santa photo in daylight, and you can head home before the program starts. If you're coming for the lighting, plan to arrive by 5:30 and stay until 7. The 1-to-7 window is wide enough that a family can come early, leave, and come back for the tree.
What 5:30 to 7 looked like last year
The 2025 evening shows how the borough builds up to the tree. The Home News reported that musicians and magicians performed on the main stage throughout the day. The Pennsylvania Classical Ballet Academy danced an excerpt from "The Nutcracker." Good Shepherd Catholic School students sang carols in front of the tree just before it was lit. Santa arrived after that, escorted by the Northampton Fire Department.
Last year there were also brews from Taylor House Brewing, mulled wine from Easton Wine Project, kettle corn, walking tacos, and visits from the Grinch and miniature highland cows. If last year's sequence holds, the 90 minutes before the lighting are mostly local groups taking turns on stage.
Borough Secretary Bernadette Singh explained the goal to The Home News after last year's event: "We wanted to bring local businesses, organizations, families, and neighbors together in a way that celebrates Northampton's spirit and supports the people who make this community special."
The first December weekend belongs to the library and the fire company
The borough calls Hometown Holidays the start of the season, and the next dates on the calendar come from two Northampton organizations. The fire department escorted Santa at the 2025 lighting. The library's Friends group runs a fundraiser that, like the Rec Center vendors, mixes shopping with a night out.
| Date | Event | Where | Details |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sat., Nov. 21 | Northampton Hometown Holidays | Northampton Recreation Center, 1 Lerchenmiller Drive | 1 to 7 p.m., program 5:30, lighting 7 |
| Fri., Dec. 4 | Friends of NAPL Sip 'n' Shop | Northampton Area Public Library, 1615 Laubach Ave. | 6 to 8 p.m., ages 19 and up, fundraiser |
| Sun., Dec. 6 | Breakfast with Santa | Chapman Lodge #637, 1103 6th Street, North Catasauqua | 8 a.m. to noon, full buffet |
The Friends of the Northampton Area Public Library Sip 'n' Shop is an in-person fundraiser for adults 19 and older, held from 6 to 8 p.m. on Friday, Dec. 4, at the library on Laubach Avenue. It falls two weeks after Hometown Holidays, which leaves time to shop for anyone the Rec Center vendors didn't cover.
Two days later comes something new for the fire company. The Northampton Fire Department announced that it's co-hosting Breakfast with Santa with Chapman Lodge #637 for the first time. It runs Sunday, Dec. 6, from 8 a.m. to noon in the lower-level social hall of the lodge at 1103 6th Street in North Catasauqua, just outside the borough. The full buffet costs $12 for adults and anyone 13 or older, $6 for children ages 5 to 12, and nothing for children 4 and under. A basket social runs throughout. Guests are asked to bring canned goods or other non-perishable food for the Northampton Middle School Food Pantry Program, and proceeds go to the lodge and the fire department.
That puts Santa in Northampton's calendar twice in about two weeks. At the Rec Center on Nov. 21, he has his village by the tree. At Chapman Lodge on Dec. 6, the fire company is co-hosting the whole morning. Families who miss the photo line on the 21st have a second chance at a buffet breakfast.
Cass Chies has watched Northampton's holiday calendar move from Main Street to Lerchenmiller Drive, and it's the kind of detail that helps people feel at home in the borough. If you're hosting family this season and want suggestions for where to take them before or after the tree lighting, Diamond 1st Real Estate is happy to share what we know. Let's Connect.
