Festive Fridays brings holiday cheer to Cape Charles

By Ava Canade

The first of Cape Charles’ annual Festive Fridays kicked off on Friday, November 28th from 5-8 P.M. on Mason Avenue in Cape Charles.

The event featured a slate of free activities for kids and families including a train ride, face painting, balloon artist, petting zoo, caricature artist, and craft tent for children. The beginning of Festive Fridays began with a parade that included a performance by the Northampton High School Marching Band. As part of the Festive Fridays movie schedule, the Historic Palace Theatre hosted a free screening of Elf at 8 P.M.

Despite the chilly temperatures and strong winds, Festive Fridays was full of people enjoying a reason to come together and get to enjoy some small town charm.

Keysan Brittingham found Festive Fridays to be an opportunity to connect with friends and family.

“The Eastern Shore don’t got a lot of whole events so stuff like this, it’s really nice for people to come together, sellers to come out and do things, it’s really nice,” he said.

While Festive Fridays creates an opportunity for locals to come together, it also attracts people from Virginia Beach and even further beyond.

Katherine King, visiting Cape Charles from Denver, CO, sees Festive Fridays as proof of the community found in small towns such as Cape Charles.

“I think it’s very cozy, our friends who are hosting us have run into several neighbors on the street which I always love seeing,” she said. “I think it definitely has small town charm, we grew up for half of our lives in Virginia Beach so we’ve heard a lot about this place and it’s definitely lived up to the stories.”

Festive Fridays continues in Cape Charles from 5-8 P.M. on December 5th, 12th, and 19th.