Warm temperatures near 80 degrees didn’t stop organizers in Foley from making it snow — artificially, at least — as thousands of families turned out for the city’s annual Christmas parade and “Let It Snow” celebration over the weekend, kicking off a packed stretch of holiday events across Baldwin County.
Following Foley’s parade, led by Santa Claus, crews used machines to pile up tons of manufactured snow inside two fenced-off play areas, one for children up to age 7 and another for kids between 8 and 13. Despite the unseasonably warm weather, children waited eagerly as the icy piles grew, then rushed in for snowball fights once the areas opened around midday.
Foley’s celebration was just one piece of a busy holiday weekend across the county. Christmas parades rolled through Gulf Shores, Silverhill and Fairhope on Friday night, while Saturday brought additional parades to Robertsdale, Elberta and Spanish Fort. Organizers across Baldwin County said the festivities were only getting started, with another wave of parades and events planned for the following weekend in Bay Minette, Lillian, Loxley, Summerdale and Daphne.
Bay Minette’s north Baldwin County community was gearing up for its 32nd annual Christmas Fest, a two-day event featuring vendor booths, a tree lighting, a visit from Santa arriving atop a fire truck, and a weekend full of family activities including a 5K, a fun run and story time at the public library. A local television meteorologist and Bay Minette native was tapped to serve as grand marshal for that city’s parade.
In Daphne, the Baldwin County Youth Orchestra planned a free performance of Sergei Prokofiev’s “Peter and the Wolf,” with organizers collecting donations for Toys for Tots at the door. Daphne’s own Christmas parade was also on the calendar for the same weekend.
Taken together, the events reflect how deeply the holiday season is woven into community life across Baldwin County, where small towns and larger municipalities alike use December to draw neighbors together for shared traditions — whether that means a snowball fight in near-summer temperatures or a hometown parade led by local school groups and dignitaries.
For families looking to make the most of the season, the flurry of scheduled events offered options nearly every weekend in December, from tree lightings and parades to musical performances and Santa visits, giving Baldwin County residents plenty of reasons to bundle up — or, in Foley’s case, break out the sunscreen — and head downtown.