MOUNT HOLLY, N.C. — In a few short weeks, wires and lights inside the Awaken Gallery will transform into something magical.
Artist Emily Andress has spent months working on her lantern that the public will soon see in this year’s Mount Holly Lantern Parade.
“The first year we only had a month to get taught and [hold the] parade," she said. "The next year we started teaching earlier.”
After living in Europe and seeing lantern parades there, Andress decided she wanted to bring that concept to Mount Holly back in 2018.
“It was so shocking what people who had never made lanterns before made," she said.
Three years later, this parade has become an event that teachers and students from across Gaston County look forward to. Alexander Brooks is the education manager for the Gaston County Museum of Art and History. The museum is not only creating lanterns for the parade, but they’ve also been able to provide donations to help more teachers participate.
“To be able to come into Mount Holly and be able to help with this programming and use this as sort of our base to spread out throughout the county, because we are having schools throughout the county do this is wonderful," said Brooks.
Due to Covid-19 the parade will be a little different. Lanterns will be set up in town so attendees can walk through and see a circus come to life, which is this year’s theme.
And while Covid-19 has changed a lot of things, Andress is making sure this parade is the one thing her community can still enjoy this year.
“We need to be shining a light…shinning everybody’s light and this is the perfect way to do it," she said.
This year’s parade will take place Saturday October 24 in Mount Holly at the Tuckaseege Park.
It will start at 7 p.m. and end at 10 p.m. You must reserve a spot to see the lanterns.
MOUNT HOLLY
Organizers Prepare for 3rd Annual Mount Holly Lantern Parade
PUBLISHED October 7, 2020 @5:38 AM