"Contrary to what is often stated and repeated as 'fact,'" the Town of Wake Forest writes on its Special Events Policy page, "the Town of Wake Forest does not prohibit community groups and non-profit organizations from hosting/organizing a Christmas Parade." The Town wrote that line because the question keeps coming back every November. The short answer is that no group has organized one since the last sponsor stepped away in 2020. The longer answer explains why this year's holidays start on a Saturday afternoon in November and then settle onto a few addresses on South Brooks Street.
Why the parade stopped
The Wake Forest Christmas Parade was never a Town event. Wake Forest Downtown, Inc., a small, volunteer-run 501(c)(3) nonprofit, produced it. In 2018 it stepped off at 1 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 8, from Elm Avenue and South White Street. It ran north on South White, turned east onto Wait Avenue, then south onto South Brooks Street, and finished at Taylor Street, according to The News & Observer's route listing.
In December 2019, the WFD board voted unanimously to cancel that year's parade "out of concern for public safety." Wake Forest Police had reported credible information that outside groups planned to come and protest, some in support of one group's participation and some against it. CBS 17 covered the cancellation on Dec. 5, 2019.
The decision that actually ended the tradition came in March 2020, when WFD voted to stop sponsoring the parade. The Town's page gives two reasons. WFD did not have the volunteers or resources to keep producing it. And the parade-day street closures across downtown made it very hard for the growing number of people who live there to come and go.
Since then, according to the Town, a few groups have shown interest, but none went ahead, mostly because of the time, effort and resources a parade takes. On Nov. 19, 2024, the Board of Commissioners approved an updated Motorized Parade Policy that sets out the requirements, and Town staff have offered to meet with any group that wants to try.
Those two reasons, volunteer capacity and full-day street closures, explain the shape of the season that replaced the parade.
What replaced it is run by the Town, and it's built to be short
The Wake Forest Cares Holiday Kick-Off is a Town event. The Town defines that as one it "creates, pays for, plans, and executes," with Town staff running the activities, logistics and vendors. It's in the same category as Friday Night on White and the Halloween Boo Bash. Staff run it, so it doesn't depend on a volunteer board the way the parade did.
It started as an online event in 2020, moved to an in-person festival in 2021, and had become an annual tradition by 2022, according to Discover Wake Forest. This year it falls on Saturday, Nov. 21, from noon to 4 p.m.
The street closures are where the change from the parade years shows most. Here's what to know before Nov. 21:
- Closed streets. East Owen Avenue, plus South White Street from Elm Avenue to Jones Avenue, close at 9 a.m. and reopen by 6 p.m. The White Street closure starts at Elm Avenue, the same corner where the 2018 parade stepped off.
- Parking. Free parking is available at the Wake Forest Center for Active Aging, 235 E. Holding Ave., at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary, and on side streets and in lots around downtown.
- Accessible parking. It's at Town Hall, 301 S. Brooks St., from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.
- Food. Downtown restaurants will sell food and drinks, and La Katrina Tacos, Not Just a Fry Guy, The Tasty Turkey Que, Kao Thai, Mr. Cannoli and JAM Ice Cream will have trucks on site.
The afternoon includes ice carving, an Interactive Christmas Tree, Christmas Toy Attack, Snowball Toss, a Snow Board Simulator, community performances and children's crafts. The Kick-Off also opens the Town's Wake Forest Cares Holiday Donation Drive. The drive supports six Town-sponsored programs: Helping Others by Providing Electricity, or HOPE; Northern Community Food Security Team; Shop with a Cop; the Wake Forest Center for Active Aging Scholarship Program; the Wake Forest Firefighters Foundation; and the Wake Forest Parks, Recreation & Cultural Resources Scholarship Program.
Sponsors range from Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary, Fidelity Bank and Piedmont Federal Bank to Nothing Bundt Cakes, Vision Martial Arts and the Wake Forest Chamber. Questions go to Downtown Development Director Jennifer Herbert.
December runs along a few blocks of South Brooks Street
In 2018 the parade turned south onto South Brooks Street to finish. Most of the December events now take place on that street, at three addresses close together:
- 301 S. Brooks St., Town Hall and Centennial Plaza
- 339 S. Brooks St., The Forks Cafeteria
- 405 S. Brooks St., Wake Forest Renaissance Centre
The Town's 2026 holiday schedule puts the big December events at these addresses:
| Date | Event | Where | Details |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fri., Dec. 4, 5–8 p.m. | Lighting of Wake Forest | Centennial Plaza, 301 S. Brooks St. | Tree lighting around 6:15 p.m., choral groups, Santa, food vendors |
| Sat., Dec. 5, 10 a.m.–4 p.m. | Holiday Artisans Market | Centennial Plaza and Town Hall visitor lot | More than 40 artists and artisans |
| Mon., Dec. 7, 6:30 p.m. | 79th Community Christmas Dinner | The Forks Cafeteria, 339 S. Brooks St. | $25 tickets, sold at The Forks |
| Dec. 17–19 | Shaun Johnson Big Band Experience: Run Run Rudolph | Renaissance Centre, 405 S. Brooks St. | Tickets start at $40 and $45 |
The closures shrink as the season moves onto Brooks Street. For the Dec. 4 lighting, the Town's approved special events list shows road impacts on Owen Avenue and Brooks Street from 2 to 10 p.m. Accessible parking for the lighting is at Town Hall.
The Artisans Market is presented by ARTS Wake Forest and the Wake Forest Guild of Artists. Expect pottery, jewelry, painting, fabric art, photography, woodworking, glass, candles and soaps.
The Community Christmas Dinner is the oldest tradition on the list. It's always held on the first Monday in December, and 2026 is its 79th year. The Sleigh Belles, a Raleigh-based a cappella trio, provide the entertainment. Mayor Ben Clapsaddle presents the Citizen of the Year, Organization of the Year and Peggy Allen Lifetime Achievement awards, and the night ends with a sing-along.
At the Renaissance Centre, Emmy-winning vocalist Shaun Johnson leads a seven-piece big band. The Friday, Dec. 18 show includes a VIP reception beforehand with a meet-and-greet and champagne.
Saturday, Dec. 5 fills the whole day
The day after the lighting is the busiest of the season, and it starts early. The Northern Community Food Security Team runs a canned food drive from 9 a.m. to noon at the Wake Forest Farmers' Market. Donations stock local mini food pantries. At 10 a.m. the Downtown Holiday Open House and the Artisans Market both open. The Open House runs until 6 p.m.
Pictures with Santa take place during the Open House at the Wake Forest Area Chamber of Commerce, 350 S. White St. Slots are limited and require advance registration, which opened Nov. 9. Each reservation comes with an arrival time to cut down on waiting, and photos will be ready after 1 p.m. on Wednesday, Dec. 9.
Dec. 5 is also the first night of the Evening Holiday Walk at E. Carroll Joyner Park, 701 Harris Road. It's free and runs nightly from 6 to 9 p.m. through Dec. 31. Lights fill the crepe myrtles and shrubs in the Walker Garden and Performance Garden, and a nearly 20-foot Christmas tree stands on the Performance Garden Stage. It's the one stretch of the season that doesn't depend on downtown streets.
The smaller dates that need sign-ups
A few Parks, Recreation & Cultural Resources events have deadlines:
- Calls from Santa, Thursday, Dec. 10, 6–8 p.m., for kids ages 3–9. It's free, but forms are due online or at Joyner Park Community Center or Town Hall by 5 p.m. Monday, Dec. 7. The Town doesn't take phone registrations, and all calls must be local.
- Snowball Dance, Friday, Dec. 11, 6:30–8:30 p.m., at Joyner Park Community Center. This winter wonderland evening with a DJ is for residents with disabilities ages 10 and older. It costs $15 per person, pre-registration is required, and participants can bring support if needed.
- Little Women, presented by Firebox Theatre, runs Dec. 11–13. Shows are Friday at 7 p.m., then Saturday and Sunday at 2 and 6:30 p.m. This adaptation by Marisha Chamberlain begins and ends at Christmas.
The December calendar fills most weekends, and the Joyner Park walk runs every night in between. The sponsor problem that ended the parade in 2020 doesn't apply to this calendar, because Town staff organize and run the Town's own events.
Downtown Wake Forest is also where many of our clients live. If you're thinking about a home near Brooks and White, where these events will be part of your December, Ensemble Properties can walk you through those blocks on an ordinary weekday as well as a festival Saturday. We'll show you which streets close for which events, so you know what a house's location means before you decide.
