I now know that choosing not to participate for all those years has been my loss. As I waited with my niece Kennedy for the ceremony to begin, I had an opportunity to talk to dozens of families most of whom have made the switch-on ceremony a family tradition…an opportunity to share the beginning of the holiday season with the ones they love.
As we chatted, a few themes emerged: community, family, tradition. Families from as far away as Temecula and as close as the surrounding downtown neighborhoods have made the annual lighting event a must-do start to the holiday season.
The centerpiece of the festival is The Historic Mission Inn Hotel, one of my favorite locations in the city. For decades the Voice offices were located on the corner of 6th and Main, directly behind the hotel. I can remember the years it was closed, the entire block gated, and at one point the structure even slated for demolition. Now the hotel is once again a resort destination for those outside the region and a local hub of activity for us locals who frequently eat at the restaurants, hold our events in the various unique meeting spaces, or relax and rejuvenate at the spa. (Full Disclosure: I admit, I do have a spa membership. Don’t judge me.)
If this sounds like an advertisement for the hotel, it’s not. I just know what the dedicated attention and investment made by Duane and Kelly Roberts, the current “Keepers of the Inn,” has done not only for the downtown economy, but for the entire region. I have known many of the small business owners for decades whose shops and restaurants are located on or near the Main Street Mall. Over the years, I have talked to people I consider friends, those merchants who are the backbone of the downtown small business community — Toni Moore whose clothing shop is located behind the Mission Inn, Susie Thiel and Mark Rubin at Simple Simons Bistro, and Cary and Wretha Knight at Upper Crust Sandwich Shop — about their business successes and challenges. They all credit the vision for The Mission Inn and the city’s festival as something that has contributed to their success and longevity.
So for me, the illumination of the Inn and spectacular fireworks display that evening had a special meaning. Yes, it marked the celebration of the holiday season but it also symbolized the transformational and resilient characteristics of the downtown community. As one of the couples I talked to that night said, “we are here every year, we shop at the stores and eat at the restaurants and just celebrate being a part of an awesome community.”