HOPE — This year’s 17th annual Christmas of Yesteryear has been canceled by the Yellow Trail Museum board of directors in Hope due to restrictions from the COVID-19 pandemic. The event had been scheduled for Dec. 4.
“With the uptick and cases and the roll back in the governor’s orders, we do not want to take chances and hold a large event,” board secretary Jessica Brown said.
When the weather is cooperative, “Christmas of Yesteryear” has been known to attract more than a thousand visitors in a single evening.
“But with crowd sizes being limited to 50 people, there is no way we can host this event with the level of cases being what they are in Bartholomew County,” Brown said.
A downtown Hope business owner has been one of the most vocal advocates of “Christmas of Yesteryear.” And despite the cancellation, Golden Nugget Pawn Shop proprietor Jackie Robb Tallent says she wants to remain optimistic during what is a tough time for everybody — not just those in her community.
The restrictions announced by Holcomb simply mean Hoosiers will have to get creative in order to create and maintain a festive holiday spirit, Tallent said.
“We’ll still have the decorations, the sales, and neighborly conversations,” Tallent said. “But the idea of having everybody come out at one time? That’s what the state is trying to curb.”
There is still be holiday music, as well as plenty of lights and decorations in Hope, Tallent said.
“We will still have plenty of what Christmas is all about,’ she said. “We just have to celebrate in smaller groups this year with masks on.”
