Boothbay Harbor Eastside Waterfront Park was a popular destination for families Nov. 21. Parents drove to the park where Santa, Mrs. Claus and their holiday helpers were handing out ornaments for the children to decorate as part of the first Ornament Decorating Contest. The park committee bought 300 ornaments for the event, and 275 went into the hands of families!

Said committee member and seasonal elf Marion Coleman, “We just wanted to do something special for the kids. So much has been canceled this year because of COVID-19. We may have the contest every year. We’ll see how this one goes first!”

There are three age-based divisions for the contest – 8 and under, ages 9-14 and 14 and over. The last category’s “and over” includes some parents who indicated they were going to decorate ornaments with their kids.

Two styles of the clear, round ornaments were selected for the contest: The younger artists received ornaments with one flat side. All 275 ornaments were given out in bags with labels for all the important information – the name of the contestant and contact information.

The decorators will bring their ornaments back to the park this Saturday, Dec. 5 between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. along with a $5 entry fee per ornament. Judging is at 3 p.m. by members of the park’s special events committee. The winning decorators from each category will be called immediately after, when they will also find out what their prize is and when and where they can pick it up.

Ornaments not entered in the contest will be used to decorate the trees and shrubs in front of the park’s Hodgdon House that is already decked out for Boothbay Lights and the holiday season: Colorful lights define the fine lines of the House that has a sleigh in the yard and a very stylish elf standing in the side doorway.

Families can come back to the park between Dec. 26 and 31 to collect their ornament for home decor 2021.