Armonk Gears Up for Frosty the Snowman’s Return on Sunday
You know it’s the holiday season when Thanksgiving weekend arrives, there’s a steady stream of Christmas commercials on radio and television and Frosty makes his return to Armonk.
The hamlet will welcome home Frosty on Sunday for the ninth consecutive year, since a group of North Castle residents, merchants and officials claimed the lovable snowman as the town’s own in 2009. Steven Nelson, who wrote the lyrics for the Christmas hit “Frosty the Snowman,” lived in Armonk for 30 years until his death in 1981.
Volunteers and town officials have turned the day into a full-scale celebration in downtown Armonk to kick off the holiday season. Judy Willsey, a downtown merchant and one of the volunteer organizers of the festivities, said in 2009 people were looking for a reason to feel good again in the immediate aftermath of the crushing Great Recession.
“Everybody was so excited and it was just so kind-natured and feel-good and warm,” Willsey said. “That’s why it’s special, because there’s an honesty and a real wholesomeness. It’s not about anybody making any money. It’s just about the faces of the kids.”
The event, which started out as a local town endeavor, now attracts a few thousand to the heart of downtown, with any cooperation from the weather, she said.
Festivities get started at 12:30 p.m. with train rides, magicians, clowns and cookie, ornament and trinket decorating scattered around downtown. The North Castle Public Library will be showing a continuous loop of Frosty cartoons and singers, dancers and musical performers will be at Armonk Square. There will also be photo ops with Santa.
Willsey said this year the special trains that carry visitor around downtown will be elongated to accommodate more riders and cut down on the length of the lines. In addition to all the downtown eateries being open, the increasingly popular food trucks will be on hand to allow visitors to get a quick bite to eat.
After all of the activities, the crowds will line the streets for the Frosty Parade, which steps off at 4 p.m. It begins on Old Route 22 and heads up Main Street to Maple Avenue, where it will turn and head to Wampus Brook Park for caroling and the annual tree lighting.
Supervisor Michael Schiliro said while he’s not surprised at the popularity of the event among local residents, that visitor now come to Armonk from around Westchester and the tristate area to be part of the experience is somewhat astonishing.
He credited the nearly year-long dedication and planning on the part of the volunteers to make the day a success.
“It’s a day where a lot of people are around and it’s also the only cold weather parade in Westchester,” Schiliro explained.
This will be the second time Frosty Day will be held on Sunday. For the first few years it was scheduled for the Saturday following Thanksgiving weekend, then planners moved it to coincide with Small Business Saturday and kick off what has traditionally been the start of the holiday season.
However, feedback from some merchants uncovered that it interfered with Small Business Saturday, prompting the move to Sunday, Willsey said. The switch has been a win-win, she said, drawing crowds to downtown for both days.
“We couldn’t believe the response when we did it on Sunday,” Willsey said. “The only reason we did it on Saturday is that a lot of stores didn’t want to be open on a Sunday. Now everybody wants to be open (this Sunday) because there’s so many people here.”
The event will be held rain, snow or shine. For more information, visit www.armonkfrosty.com.
Martin has more than 30 years experience covering local news in Westchester and Putnam counties, including a frequent focus on zoning and planning issues. He has been editor-in-chief of The Examiner since its inception in 2007. Read more from Martin’s editor-author bio here. Read Martin’s archived work here: https://www.theexaminernews.com/author/martin-wilbur2007/
