The lighting of the Christmas Tree last week was called off due to weather, but plans to combine a couple of events this December might help to pull the community together around the Christmas holiday.

“We are going to do a modified Christmas Village shopping experience for kids,” Christy Nuetzman, Clinton County Extension Agent for Family and Consumer Sciences said. “This year we were unable to secure as many gift items, so we will limit the number of shoppers.”

Nuetzman said they will come up with a number of shoppers the Christmas Village will be able to accommodate at a later time.

“We are planning on combining the Christmas Village with the Early Childhood Center’s Family Literacy night,” Nuetzman said.

From 4 p.m. until 5 p.m. on December 18, families can come and have the opportunity to listen to the Polar Express read by the Clinton County Library staff.

“There will also be different crafts going on in the library at 5 p.m. and we will have different businesses to come in to try and participate in the Reindeer Games and those kinds of things,” Nuetzman said. “Also, from 5-5:30, the Albany Elementary School Choir is going to perform so we will have that going.”

Nuetzman said Santa will also make an appearance for anyone looking to have their photo made.

“We are potentially working on the story walk that we wanted to do here around town. We may be able to do a modified version of that,” Nuetzman said. “At 5:30, the Polar Express movie will be shown in the auditorium, and there will be hot chocolate and cookies for the kids.”

Nuetzman said they want any of the businesses who had items to pass out on the night of the Christmas Tree lighting, to come out.

“We want to ask them to do that on the night of the 18th,” Nuetzman said. “Basically it will look like Christmas Village has in the past … it’s just an opportunity to continue the Christmas spirit.”

Even though rain canceled the Christmas Tree Lighting event, Nuetzman did find one ornament on the tree that had been placed by a family in Albany.

“Finding one ornament on the tree that a family has brought up is pretty exciting considering we weren’t able to light the tree last week,” Nuetzman said.

There are several ideas being passed around the extension circle in preparation for next year’s event, including purchasing a tree and planting it on the square.

“We want something we could have planted and ready for next year,” Nuetzman said. “We appreciate the fact that businesses were willing to support us and we hope we can continue to kind of promote those businesses on the night of the 18th. It’s really about giving the kids an opportunity to shop and to do crafts and highlight the kids who will perform in the choir.”