Victorian Christmas brings spirit of holidays to more than 30,000

Dec. 18—THOMASVILLE- The streets of Downtown Thomasville were filled on Thursday and Friday night, as visitors and residents alike enjoyed the annual Victorian Christmas celebrations.

With attractions and sweet delicacies at every corner, there was something for everyone at this year's holiday event.

Scents of fried Oreos and honey buns from Best Friends Dog Rescue wafted down Broad Street, while the clacking of horse-drawn carriages could be heard down Madison Street.

When not enjoying a sweet treat, thousands milled down the streets enjoying performances by The Firm Dance Company, the TCCHS Dazzlers and Jazz Band, and the Rose City Ballet. They perhaps even heard a tune from one of the many talented vocalists in attendance including, Glass Harp Musician Brian Engle, Vocalist Lizz Yoder, the Capital Chordsman, or maybe the Crispy Tendies Barbershop Quartet.

The Crispy Tendies, based out of Valdosta, were overwhelmed with the amount of support and cheers they received during their Thursday and Friday night performances.

"I honestly didn't think there would be this many people," said Michael Meeks. "I knew it was a big thing, but to see this many people walking by, recording, listening, and taking pictures of us is a cool feeling. I never expected this and am just happy to be here and be a part of this."

Prior to their performance, the quartet had never attended Victorian Christmas.

"It's kind of surprising because I've heard of Victorian Christmas but I had never been here," said Jose' Camacho. "To see it be so busy and bustling, it's beautiful."

The event especially took Isaiah Ricks by surprise, who is used to performing back at the airport in Canada.

"I've never done events like this before," he said. "This has been really fun; it's a nice, big crowd and I just love the environment."

However, for one bass from Lehigh Acres, Florida, it gave all the warmth of home.

"Ft. Myers does something similar with their Music Walk, but seeing the vast amount of people and the whole community come together is really nice to see," Jorge Flores said. "You don't get a lot of this in Valdosta."

The performance for the quartet was the largest one they've done to date, stating it was bigger than their showing at Wild Adventures.

"The crowd at Wild Adventures was mostly people just walking by, but here we actually have people standing by and taking pictures and videos," Meeks said excitedly. "This is the biggest thing we've done by far."

To add to the excitement, the Crispy Tendies said they received a lot of great feedback from those in attendance, especially one woman on Thursday night.

"We were singing "Coventry Carol," which isn't very well known, so the fact we sang it really captivated her," said Camacho. "She was walking with her partner and she stopped dead in her tracks and listened to us."

The Crispy Tendies were excited to be a part of her, along with many other Victorian Christmas memories, and would love to return next year.

"I know in the next year, our living situations will be a little different, but we would love to make a trip out of it and return for this event," Meeks said.

Unique entertainment like The Crispy Tendies is one of the main draws to Victorian Christmas, even for locals.

Public Information Officer for the City of Thomasville Tara Pearson said that as a citizen, she had an awesome time at this year's event.

"I loved all the new entertainment and thought the Christmas llamas were absolutely adorable," she said."

Pearson was only one of the many to enjoy the event.

According to Main Street Director Brandy Avery, the 37th Annual Victorian Christmas was a massive success.

"Both Thursday and Friday night had a lot of visitors attending, but on Friday, we did have locals out and about," she said.

Avery estimates the event saw 36,000 attendees between the two night of events.