Rochester Life

Spectacular “Light the Village” Fireworks Show & Parade Draws Thousands to Village of Rochester Hills!

Fireworks, Food, Music, Lights, and Santa provide Joyous Outdoor Celebration

All the right ingredients were on hand last night to produce a spectacular holiday celebration at the Village of Rochester Hills.

Stan the Fireman thrilled children with mini-firetruck drives through Main Street. Mike the DJ started the crowd motion with music from the main stage. Rochester’s own Kevin Wills thrilled the audience with classic Christmas hits. Parents holding wide-eyed children lined Main Street as the Parade marched through. Mayor Barnett and parade fan Colin delivered the Key to the City to Santa. Fireworks lit up the sky revealing thousands of smiling patrons. Food trucks, along with The Village shops offered hot chocolate, cookies, donuts, and a variety of delectables satisfying everyone’s palate.

Mini-Fire Engine rides from Stan the Fireman

Foods Trucks were scattered throughout The Village offering tasty treats from Bear Claw Coffee, Bubble Bee Tea, Detroit Freeze, DVine Cookies, Ingram Candies, and the Little Donut Factory.

D'VINE Cookies and Bubble Bea Tea at your service

"Light the Village" wants to invest back into the local community. This year, Beans-to-Bags was on-hand. Avondale High School students raise funds for scholarships and those in need within the local community by selling locally grown, freshly roasted coffee.

The Avondale Theater Company also made an appearance. Mike Sheldon, Artistic Director, shared how the company won a competition to attend The Fringe Festival in Edinburgh, Scotland the summer of 2023. They are currently raising funds for the trip.

(l-r) Isabelle Bahorski, Liam Kakuda, and Nathalia Quintanilla share their Beans-to-Bags story. (r) Mike Sheldon and crew

DJ Mike not only warmed up the crowd with classic favorites, he also brought Santa with him. Mike Frazier is the founder of Prestige Entertainment based in Rochester Hills. Mike's team did an awesome job with staging, sound, and lights to setup the epi-center of the evening's activities. Side note: All Mike's Santas are professionally trained at Santa Claus school in Midland, MI.

DJ Mike warms up the crowd!

Crowds gathered around the main stage as DJ Mike opened the night. Directly across from the main stage is The Village Christmas Tree. There we found Ben and Kari Weaver and family listening to tunes and taking in the night's excitement.

Three Generations of the Weaver Family enjoying the festivities!

Rochester's very own crooner, Kevin Wills, filled the night with holiday favorites from Frank Sinatra, Andy Williams and Mike Buble.

Kevin Wills finishes strong with the Classic..."Have Yourself A Very Merry Christmas!"

The Hampton Family of Rochester enjoys "The Lighting of Village" for the first time.

The "Light the Village" outdoor celebration was clearly for all ages. Everywhere you looked, grandparents, children, and grandchildren were soaking in the evening's activities together.

Debbie Giaier of Rochester Hills with her daughter Olivia Dobson of Bloomfield Hills and Olivia's daughter!

Tommy and Ariel Underwood, from Rochester Hills, enjoyed bringing the kids to see the "Light The Village" outdoor celebration for the first time!

When the singing was over it was time for the parade. Families lined The Village's Main Street (kids in front) with enthusiastic children flapping glo-sticks waiting for Santa's arrival!

Santa's larger-than-life elf towers over the fascinated children!

Santa arrives to throngs of cheering kids!

photo by Prestige Entertainment

Santa takes Center Stage!

photo by Prestige Entertainment

Mayor Barnett and young parade fan Colin present Santa with the Key to the City!

photo by Prestige Entertainment

Mayor Barnett enthusiastically stirs up the crowd in anticipation of "Lighting The Village"!

The Magic Moment: Young parade fan Colin presses the button, thus "Lighting The Village" with his mom and Councilman David Walker looking on!

With the The Village lit and the countdown complete...the Fireworks Begin!

photo by Prestige Entertainment

First Responders

With thousands of people on hand and the need to manage risk with traffic, fireworks, and crowd flow, we can all offer up a BIG THANK YOU to those who helped keep us safe during the "Light The Village" celebration. From the Oakland County Sheriff's Rochester Hills Team to our Rochester Fire Department to the Village Security Team, so many kept watch so we could watch the events with our families.

This year's brand new fireworks show required considerable planning and support. Behind the buildings, unnoticed by most spectators was a highly trained crew from the Rochester Hills Fire Department!

Big Thanks to (l-r) Lieutenant Szyszkiewicz, Firefighter Milbreath, and Lieutenant Beckett!

Fireworks Show Draws Big Cheers!

Fireworks Light Up the Sky!

Fireworks Colors Merge with Village Lights for Spectacular Viewing!

An event of this magnitude could not be pulled off without the countless hours of preparation by a core team. A Big Thank goes to Anjelica Dudek, Marketing Coordinator at The Village of Rochester Hills! Not only did Anjelica invest numerous hours prepping for this event, she also celebrated her Wedding last weekend! Congratulations Anjelica!

Anjelica Dudek, Marketing Coordinator for The Village of Rochester Hills, provides attendees additional directions and information on visiting Santa!

Santa Greets the Kids!

photo by Prestige Entertainment

As the "Light The Village" outdoor celebration came to a close, spectators still had many options to finish their evening. Many took seats at the Village restaurants from Bravo's, PF Changs, Mitchell's Fish Market, Kruse and Muer, Starbucks, and the newly opened Shake Shack. Still others continued to window shop at the beautifully decorated displays. However, the best way to end the evening was a visit with Santa and a chance for some to deliver their Santa letters for Christmas!

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