A Truly Blessed Season
The Lights of Christmas presents A Drive-Thru Christmas is officially in the 2020 books. Between the overwhelming positive response from the community and the overall success of the event, the staff here at Warm Beach Camp and Conference Center (WBC) feel accomplished and blessed.
During the summer, the leaders of The Lights of Christmas decided to transition to a drive-thru format to better serve the community during the pandemic. This decision was made out of an abundance of caution for our guests, and for the financial status of WBC, a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization, and the beloved staff. While reformatting the event allowed WBC to provide the same warm Holiday hospitality it has for 24 years, it also came with an abundance of uncertainty.
How would people respond to the change in format? Would people want to come? Could the grounds even accommodate the number of cars needed to make it successful? These were just some of the questions that needed answering.
There were projections made about admission sales, mini-donut sales, and more. The event blew them all out of the water!
The Lights of Christmas team set the goal of serving 20,000 cars over the 26-day span of the event, the final number of cars through was approximately 28,000!
The community showed their support beautifully through participation in the event, but also with more positive reviews than ever!
One guest wrote on Facebook, “Remarkable how they were able to adapt to COVID regulations and provide a really nice experience for the kiddos. Good job!”
While another shared on the event survey, “Thanks for a great Christmas experience even with the COVID challenges! It brightened up our season!”
Seasoned guests to The Lights of Christmas know that mini-donuts are a must, and word definitely spread, because the event sold more of those little doughy circles of joy than ever before! 138,000 of them in fact!
While the 2020 holiday season was different and challenging in more ways than one, The Lights of Christmas remained a light of joy, hope, and peace in the community, and the community was without a doubt a source of joy, hope, and peace for everyone who worked the event!
Thank you, and see you later this year!
-Carl Kulper, Communications Specialist
Warm Beach Camp and Conference Center
Home of The Lights of Christmas