Ho ho, my hoodlums! I’m out of town right now, at a magical little Mendocino County cabin with a gaggle of girlfriends, so I missed Healdsburg’s main event last night — but I hear the plaza tree-lighting in America’s third best Christmastown was as poppin’ as ever this year. We still got it, y’all! And I sure hope you haven’t hit the end of your appetite for festive local holiday stuff yet, because this week’s Healdsburg event log is fully stocked with tons more ways to squeeze all the goo from the season. We’ve got…
A Woodie Guthrie-inspired Hanukkah concert at the Raven
A high-energy annual basketball tourney in the HHS gym
DIY workshops for making wreaths, ornaments, treats, etc
The only “holiday high tea” in town with any seats left
A steamy new play about an elderly love affair
No end to our glorious local gift market scene
And so many more reasons to hustle and bustle around town
BTW, speaking of gift markets, you might have heard about a crafty scam going around last month for a bogus holiday bazaar called the “Joyful Christmas Crafts Market” in the west plaza parking lot on the weekend of Dec. 20-21. Healdsburg police say the scammers who circulated the flier were “targeting would-be vendors at this non-existent event” — aka, trying to get local artisans to pay a fee for a booth at the market. But yeah, it’s not a real thing, so forget you ever heard about it, K? And in general, remember to double-check stuff you see online and do some digging before you shell out any of your hard-won cash this season. Cause scammers are always getting smarter! They really did manage to nail the Healdsburg Christmas-market vibes, to a T.
Now before we move on, let’s wash the taste of fraud out of our mouths with a quick recap of our three biggest events of the season, from the past couple weeks. Nothing fake about these bangers…
Let’s start with the rollicking “Merry Healdsburg” fest in the plaza last night. Twas lit, by all accounts! Photos posted by Vice Mayor Chris Herrod showed a shoulder-to-shoulder crowd packing the plaza as this year’s downtown tree went up in lights. Then there were the stilt fairies, the horse-drawn carriages, the market stalls and everything else you could ask for in your pursuit to feel cozy and Christmassy, except snow maybe. Oh also, Shop Local Healdsburg posted a hilarious video of a crowd mobbing Santa at the tree-lighting like he was some kind of international pop star, or Jesus or something — reaching out to try and touch him, pushing their babies toward him, and so on. Just another jolly Friday night in Christmastown! (Video: Charlene Schnall via Facebook)
And last weekend in Geyserville, the annual lighted tractor parade flooded our tiny northern neighbor town with thousands of onlookers, quadrupling its population per usual. The crowd was a “hardy bunch,” in the words of Healdsburg Tribune photographer Rick Tang, who took some great pics of this year’s impossibly twinkly ag fest. Rick also caught State Sen. Mike McGuire, an Alexander Valley resident and our new hometown congressional candidate, hamming it up with other parade watchers last Saturday night. Mike really seems to be everywhere these days! (Video: Geyserville Chamber of Commerce via Facebook)
Just a couple days before that, 4,000-plus ambitious runners, joggers and walkers took over the foggy streets of Healdsburg for our 14th annual local Turkey Trot on Thanksgiving Day — reportedly the largest per-capita event of its kind in the country. Aka, one more good reason to call Healdsburg a holiday icon. Rick Tang, the same photographer from the tractor parade, wrote after this year’s trot: “Wow! The Healdsburg Turkey Trot Thanksgiving morning was spectacular. Perched on a ladder, I watched a river of humanity and dogs run and walk below me.” Local sports photog Michael Lucid also got some nice shots of the 2025 race winners — you know, those super sporty folks who actually take these things seriously. Needless to say, the Turkey Trot raised a whole bunch more money to help local student athletes pay for college again in 2025. Woot! (Video: Shop Local Healdsburg via Instagram)
My Christmas wish this year, besides meeting my true love under a falling star one night, is that The Healdsburg Newsletter will grow into a central community institution that keeps us all informed and unified, forevermore. To that end, I’d love your help getting the whole town on board! (Plus all our expats and everyone else out there who’s randomly obsessed with Healdsburg, of course.) You can send people this link to subscribe. Or better yet, give them the holiday gift of an all-access paid subscription, by clicking the “Gift” option at the top of this page. Now that’s love! 💫
NOW, AIR OVER HEALDSBURG
The fog has returned to haunt us this morning. Not quite snow, but with a similar essence… ☃️ (Photo: Holly Wilson)
ON THE CALENDAR
Featured event (from my sponsor!)
Healdsburg collector hosts online estate auction with “a lifetime of valuable items, including exquisite vintage collectibles” (ends Thu, Dec 11, 6pm)
Wow. Check out the latest haul from Healdsburg auctioneer Teerah Rochioli, who helps locals find new homes for their life’s treasures through her company, North Bay Online Estate Auctions. Just in time for the holidays, this new collection is filled with delightful items like vintage gumball machines, romantic Victorian dresses, gorgeous rugs and glassware, an ancient wooden radio, a child’s rocking chair and so much more cool stuff — great as gifts or for your own collection. “After many years in this cherished home in Healdsburg, our client is downsizing,” Teerah says. “They have decided to downsize and transition to a new living arrangement. In preparing for this significant change, we have sorted through a lifetime of valuable items, including exquisite vintage collectibles.” That’s where you come in! The auction ends next Thursday at 6pm, so scope out your faves and start bidding now. May the best Healdsburgian win… (Image: North Bay Online Estate Auction Inc.)
Saturday, December 6
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