Have you ever found yourself out of town the one day at the beginning of each December when the Newtown Youth and Family Services’ Holiday Festival is scheduled, and wished you had been able to partake in the festive event?

If there can be any silver lining to the novel coronavirus pandemic, perhaps it is that this year the Holiday Festival is stretched out over a week, offering a wide variety of events starting this Sunday, December 6 through Saturday, December 12. If one day does not suit your schedule, you can probably find another day to take part in some of the fun, all to benefit our local youth and mental health organization.

The nonprofit NYFS has supported the community for over three decades, providing services that include counseling, programs to address substance abuse and improve social skills, support groups, and other youth and mental health programs for children and families. No matter how trivial your trials may seem to you, no matter how insurmountable your troubles may feel, NYFS has trained staff ready to offer guidance.

Support for NYFS allows the organization to enhance programming and bolster financial assistance for its clients. In past years, the one-day Holiday Festival has traditionally been the largest fundraiser for NYFS each year. Ticket sales allowing access to events have been the fundraising boost needed in previous years; NYFS is counting on residents who love this annual event to register for the individual 2020 programs this year at newtownyouthandfamilyservices.org. Costs for the programs vary; but without a one-price-fits-all ticket sale, it is difficult to judge the benefit to our local health service. If you usually purchase a $15-$18 ticket that gains you entrance to the Holiday Festival festivities and house tours (clearly not a part of the 2020 celebration), consider picking and choosing to take part in enough virtual events that your registration equals what you would have paid for a ticket. If it is more, so much the better for this valuable town organization!

Virtual programming and home projects for the 2020 Holiday Festival address the issue of potential spread of the novel coronavirus, and any in-person activities, such as a visit to the Festival of Trees at Edmond Town Hall or the December 6 Road to Disney Scavenger Hunt, have been designed in such a way to keep all safe.

We are impressed already with the planning put into bringing holiday joy to Newtown. We have adapted for so many months to changes in how we interact, who we do and do not see, where we do and do not go. Holidays are often stressful in the best of times. In times like this year, far from the best of times, stress is an evermore constant companion for some, and a new and unwelcome acquaintance for many others.

Newtown Youth and Family Services is here to help you through challenging situations. Help them to help you and your neighbors.

The Holiday Festival is here! Make merry!