After one of the toughest economic years for small businesses, Kingfisher Chamber of Commerce and downtown merchants are pulling out all the stops for the traditional kickoff for the holiday shopping season.

The holiday open house, a decades’ old Kingfisher tradition on the first Sunday in November, is coming back bigger and better than ever Nov. 1.

The “bigger” includes the Express Clydesdales of Express Employment Professionals, the team of gentle giants which will be marching into town in one of their first appearances of the holiday season.

(See related story at right.)

The horses will be tentatively located at the parking lot behind the former First United Methodist Church where they will be available for free photos before carrying Santa and Mrs. Claus to a ceremonial Christmas tree lighting in front of the Kingfisher County Courthouse at 5:30 p.m.

The Kingfisher High School choir will sing a selection of Christmas favorites, followed by communal carols at 5:45 p.m. and the official lighting of the tree at 6 p.m.

That’s all part of the “better” that will bracket what local residents have already come to love about the first shopping day of the season.

While Sts. Peter and Paul Catholic Church has canceled its annual turkey dinner for the first time in more than 50 years because of COVID-19 precautions, the Stack downtown restaurant is stepping into the gap with dine in and take out options for traditional Thanksgiving meals.

Food trucks also will be serving a variety of fare all afternoon.

Participating local merchants will be open beginning at noon with holiday bargains and shopping opportunities galore.

See advertisements in next Wednesday’s paper for more details.

Adding to the value of hometown shopping is the reduced city sales tax, which will be in place through Jan. 1, even if voters approve the city’s capital improvement tax on the November general election ballot.

Besides photos with the Clydesdales, local families will have two other holiday photo options.

Century 21 Goodyear Green Real Estate is sponsoring photos with Santa from 2-5 p.m. at its downtown office.

Photos will be uploaded to an online platform, where they can be downloaded a few days after the event, realtor Morgan Winters said.

Wolfsburg Photo Bus also will offer a mobile photo booth, with props. Families can purchase the photos on disc for $5.

“We have taken a small, traditional occasion, and turned it into a family-friendly holiday shopping event that no one will want to miss,” Chamber Manager Shawna Rupp said.

“This is another example of our small business owners going the extra mile to keep our economy strong, even in the midst of the pandemic.

“These businesses are the backbone of our economy and the people who support our schools and children’s activities and also our local government with their sales taxes.

“In return, all they ask is that we bring our families, enjoy a safe, fun holiday event and keep our dollars local.

“This is exactly the distraction we all need during these challenging times.”