Frosty Ready to Make a Triumphant Return to Armonk This Sunday
With a lot of hard work by volunteer organizers and the Town of North Castle, Armonk will be celebrating the return of Frosty the Snowman this Sunday afternoon.
The 12th annual Frosty Day is ready to roll, an afternoon of fun activities for children and families, live music and treats and an overall good time for everyone. The day is set to start at 12:30 p.m. followed by the parade up Main Street at 4 p.m. and the lighting of the town’s Christmas tree at Wampus Brook Park at nightfall.
If everything goes off without a hitch, it will mark the first time in three years that the event wasn’t either canceled, as it was last year because of the pandemic, or curtailed. In 2019, the parade was called off as a result of a snowfall.
There is a great deal of anticipation for Sunday, said Judy Willsey, one of the Frosty Day organizers and the owner of Framings on Main Street.
“People are just buzzing,” Willsey said. “They’re so excited, they’re so happy.”
Among the roving bands that will be on hand to perform this year, will be a kazoo band and a mariachi band, she said.
Most of the same attractions and activities will be back on Sunday including the train ride from Town Hall that makes a loop throughout the downtown and returns, other performers including singers, a clown and a magician, ornament and trinket decorating and a Build-a-Frosty. If you need to go inside to warm up or to sit down for bit, there will be Frosty cartoons shown at the North Castle Public Library.
At 4 p.m., more than 40 local organizations will participate in the parade up Main Street, accompanied by decorated floats and vehicles and marching bands. The parade will turn onto Maple Avenue and head to Wampus Brook Park for the tree lighting.
Willsey said a nice touch this year is that at sundown is the first night of Hanukkah, so in addition to lighting the Christmas tree, the town will also illuminate the first light on its menorah at the park.
Of course, those who attend will be able to see the star of the day, Frosty. He will be on hand throughout the afternoon and will march in the parade and help organizers and town officials light the tree at the gazebo in the park.
Supervisor Michael Schiliro said perhaps because of all the challenges during the past two years, there appears to be an even greater excitement among people in town this year and celebrating the start of the holiday season.
“It does feel like it, and it’s outdoors, so that lends itself to more participation (this year) for those who might be reluctant to go indoors or go inside for a prolonged period of time,” Schiliro said. “It seems from the organizational side, they’re very excited about it, there’s a buzz in town, people are talking about it, people around the county are talking about it, and it’s just such a premiere event.”
More than a decade ago, Armonk claimed Frosty the Snowman as its own when it was learned that Steve Nelson, the song’s lyricist, lived for about the last 30 years of his life in Armonk until his death in 1981. He is believed to have had the downtown in mind when wrote the lyrics.
The song “Frosty the Snowman,” was released in 1950 and originally recorded by Gene Autry. It has been covered by numerous artists during the past 70 years.
For anyone attending on Sunday, some of the indoor activities may require masks to be worn.
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/
