Detroit's Holiday Tree Lighting

Friday, November 20, 2009
5 PM to midnight
Campus Martius Park

Detroit's Official Holiday Tree Lighting 2009 Presented by DTE Energy

Highlights include musical performances, children's choir, iceskating performances, open skating, Santa Claus, tree lighting and more!




Fast Facts: 
 - Tree Lighting at approximately 8 pm
 - Rink opens to public at 9 pm
 - Rink-side seat tickets are $10 and available in advance at the Rink House or on the day of the event at the corner of Monroe & Park Streets 4-8pm.




 

Campus Martius Park, “Detroit’s Gathering Place,” the Detroit 300 Conservancy, and DTE Energy will host a holiday celebration and the annual Detroit Tree Lighting Ceremony on Nov. 20, 2009. The festivities will run from 5 PM to midnight and will feature entertainment, live music, ice-skating shows, and other seasonal family activities. Robert Gregory, President of the Detroit 300 Conservancy, made the announcement.

This special metro Detroit tradition will celebrate its sixth year anniversary and feature a wide variety of winter fun events for the entire family. WOMC 104.3 FM’s Radio Hall of Famer Dick Purtan and FOX 2’s Jay Towers will co-host the evening’s festivities, and Detroit Mayor Dave Bing, DTE Energy Chairman and CEO Anthony Earley, and other dignitaries will also be present. The Salvation Army will kick off the event with its Red Kettle fundraising effort, followed by an exciting lineup of local and national acts, including the Cass Tech High School Marching Band, Detroit Skate Club skaters, the Michigan Opera Theater Children’s Chorus, Hot Sauce, national recording artists Bomshel, and legendary Detroit sax man Alto Reed. Visitors can also enjoy horse-drawn carriage rides, have pictures taken with DTE Energy’s “Louie the Lightning Bug” or Santa Claus, and take advantage of The Salvation Army “Family Fun Tent,” with games and activities for children and their families. Refreshments will be available on-site for purchase.

The highlight will be the magical tree lighting, taking place at approximately 8 PM. The tree is a 60-foot Norway Spruce that weighs over 16,000 pounds, has a 38-foot span of branches and will be decorated with over 18,000 lights on over three miles of wire. It will take more than a week to light and decorate the tree.

“There’s no doubt in my mind that this year’s Detroit Tree Lighting Ceremony is going to be the biggest and the best yet,” Gregory said. “We’re also celebrating our sixth anniversary at Campus Martius Park, truly ‘Detroit’s Gathering Place.’ We’re very fortunate to have contemporary country music duo Bomshel, Alto Reed, and other top-quality performers at our event this year, and we think there’s no better way to kick off a holiday celebration and ring in the winter season than at Campus Martius Park in the heart of downtown Detroit.”

Preferred seating tickets for the event are available for $10 in advance at the Rink House or on the day of the event at the corner of Monroe and Park streets.

The downtown party keeps rockin’ after the tree lighting festivities at the Hard Rock Café adjacent to The Park. Starting at 8:30 PM, Michigan native Kristy Osmonson and Kelley Shepard, who make up the country duo Bomshel, will perform hits from their debut album, “Fight Like a Girl.”

The FREE destination shuttle between Campus Martius Park and the IKEA store in Canton will make the round trip between The Park and the store every hour from 9 AM to 10 PM Nov. 19-21 and 9 AM to 8 PM Nov. 22. The buses will pick up and drop passengers off at the Hard Rock Café adjacent to The Park, 45 Monroe St., and also at IKEA, located at 41640 Ford Road, Canton.

This event is made possible, in part, from the great support of our special CMP Partners, including DTE Energy, Fox 2 Detroit, Compuware, IKEA, Boost Mobile, Marketing Associates, City of Detroit, Detroit Media Partnership, CBS Radio Detroit, WOMC, WWJ, WYCD, AMP, Charter One, Hard Rock Café, The Detroit People Mover, BERLINE, Greko Printing, Sterling Group, Hines, Honors, Blumz and Health Plan of Michigan.


 

 

About Campus Martius Park
Campus Martius Park, Detroit’s award winning Gathering Place and the centerpiece of revitalization in downtown, is a legacy gift to the city of Detroit from the Detroit 300 Conservancy, a nonprofit organization that has raised over $20 million to design, construct and operate The Park through businesses, foundations, and individual donations. For more information, contact the Detroit 300 Conservancy at 313-962-0101 or visit www.campusmartiuspark.org.