BonnerSprings.com

As he prepared to cut the ribbon at the top of Oak Street, Mayor Clausie Smith announced the official renaming of that well-worn street to be Candy Cane Promenade.

And with that, the Christmas spirit in Bonner Springs was awakened with a parade, tree lighting ceremony, carols performed by the Bonner Springs Elementary choir and possibly the largest display of giving Vaughn-Trent Community Services had ever seen.

In a notice posted on the city Web site prior to Monday night’s Candy Cane Promenade event, residents were asked to bring canned goods to donate to Vaughn-Trent. During the event, a contest was also held to see which parade float had the most canned goods to offer, and the Bonner Springs Cub Scouts won the trophy — though president of the Bonner Professional Women organization Jeannine Gallagher, who chose the winner, later said she didn’t know how many items the scouts had collected.

The Bonner Springs-Edwardsville Chamber of Commerce, which helped to put the entire event on, capped off the giving with its own donation of more than 400 nonperishable items and a check for $500.

“I know it’ll be put to very good use,” said chamber president Marcia Ashford as the check was presented to Carol Geary, Vaughn-Trent director.

Tourism Committee director Nancy Johnson estimated the number of nonperishable items donated to Vaughn Trent Monday night to be in the vicinity of 2,000.

“I thought it was very generous,” said Geary following the event. “Especially in this economy. It’s so wonderful and it’s such a big help to get a large amount like that.”

What this gift will mean to Vaughn-Trent and the Bonner Springs community also wasn’t lost on the residents who attended the event.

“(The Candy Cane Promenade had) a lot bigger turnout and people seemed to be enjoying it more,” said Bonner Springs resident Bart Betzen. “And Vaughn-Trent got a lot more this year than it did (during last year’s event), which is great for the community.”

The event was organized through a collaboration of the Tourism Committee, the BPW and the chamber. Though the tree lighting ceremony has been a long-standing Bonner Springs tradition, Johnson said this was the second year the parade and other events were added. New attractions added to last year’s event include the Christmas lights circled around the light poles all down Oak Street and the wooden candy canes attached to each light pole, which Johnson said were created by the BSHS woodworking and art departments. Additionally, the Bonner Springs Parks and Recreation department offered train rides for children and anyone who wanted to do some Christmas shopping could be brought to the door of a downtown business byway of a horse-drawn carriage.

Johnson estimated that about 500 people showed up to the event and said she could feel the spirit of Christmas in the air.

Well, minus one important element.

“It’s the kickoff for the Christmas sprit,” Johnson said. “The lights are on now throughout the city and we’re just waiting for cold weather.”

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