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More hunters for early start of deer season

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Storm pushes into Midwest with heavy snow and winds, will hit NEPA Sunday

<p>WILKES-BARRE &#8212; Public Square was transformed into a winter wonderland on Saturday for the city&#8217;s Old-Fashioned Holiday Market that for many has become tradition.</p><p>The event, part of the city&#8217;s Small Business Saturday which this year celebrated its 10th anniversary, was complete with not only quality vendors, but carriage rides, entertainment, crafts, a live nativity scene and of course, visits with Santa.</p><p>To Danielle Sawicki the event was a chance to kick off the season complete with a glittery &#8220;Jingle Bell&#8221; sweater and a bright smile.</p><p>Sawicki assumed the role of Santa&#8217;s elf for a second year, assigned to passing out gifts and candy.</p><p>Following the completion of her elf duties, Sawicki said she enjoyed listening to Christmas carols which filled the square from singers on the event&#8217;s stage.</p><p>When asked if she would be back next year, Sawicki said, smiling, &#8220;I&#8217;m doing this every year.&#8221;</p><p>Ann Elick, who was attending the event for the first time, said she enjoyed vendors that offered both crafts and foods.</p><p>&#8220;I&#8217;m here to support local business,&#8221; she said. &#8220;And I enjoyed the live nativity.&#8221;</p><p>Elick said she would be finishing up the day with a carriage ride, with her daughter and two grandchildren beside her as they circled the square. &#8220;It&#8217;s going to be great,&#8221; she said. &#8203;</p><p>Vendor Michelle Edwards, Pittston, who was participating in the event for the first time, called it &#8220;awesome.&#8221;</p><p>Edwards and her daughter Jennifer started off the day a bit worried about the possibility of cold temperatures, but as temperatures rose, both deemed the weather perfect for selling crocheted items.</p><p>Edwards said her grandchildren had dropped by the event and were more than happy to spend some time at the Kirby Center making ornaments, some of which they took home and others that remained on the tree in the center&#8217;s stately lobby.</p><p>The center&#8217;s Artistic Director Anne Rodella said the venue offered a warm spot for youngsters to do crafts and enjoy some popcorn while their parents shopped. &#8220;The vendors here at the center are local artists,&#8221; she said. Rodella said activities at the Center provided a chance to see the holidays through children&#8217;s eyes, recovering some of the magic of the season. &#8220;The children were singing &#8220;Here comes Santa Claus,&#8217;&#8221; she said. &#8220;And that was when Santa made his entrance.&#8221; Patty Hughes, the city&#8217;s special events coordinator, deemed all aspects of Small Business Saturday a success.</p><p>Very exciting for Hughes and other community leaders was the opening of the event with a ribbon cutting celebrating not onlySmall Business Saturday&#8217;s 10th anniversary, but also to mark the city&#8217;s commitment to &#8220;moving to the next level.&#8221; Crediting the support of the PPL Foundation, Hughes said building off the Old Fashioned Holiday Market, the event was looking forward to the use of additional indoor space during next year&#8217;s event. Small Business Saturday was coordinated by the Diamond City Partnership, the Greater Wilkes-Barre Chamber of Commerce, the Downtown Wilkes-Barre Business Association and the City of Wilkes-Barre.</p><style>
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<div class="neCaption">Passengers make their way around Wilkes-Barre&#8217;s Public Square in a horse-drawn carriage at the Old-Fashioned Holiday Market on Saturday.  </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/web1_TTL120119HolidayMarket_5.jpg</photo0><caption0>Passengers make their way around Wilkes-Barre&#8217;s Public Square in a horse-drawn carriage at the Old-Fashioned Holiday Market on Saturday.  </caption0><photoCredit0>Bill Tarutis | For Times Leader </photoCredit0></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/web1_TTL120119HolidayMarket_6.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">Wilkes-Barre Mayor Tony George, third from left, cuts the ribbon celebrating the 10th anniversary of Small Business Saturday with members of the City of Wilkes-Barre, Greater Wilkes-Barre Chamber of Commerce, Diamond City Partnership, and the Downtown Wilkes-Barre Business Association before the start of the Old-Fashioned Holiday Market on Saturday. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo1>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/web1_TTL120119HolidayMarket_6.jpg</photo1><caption1>Wilkes-Barre Mayor Tony George, third from left, cuts the ribbon celebrating the 10th anniversary of Small Business Saturday with members of the City of Wilkes-Barre, Greater Wilkes-Barre Chamber of Commerce, Diamond City Partnership, and the Downtown Wilkes-Barre Business Association before the start of the Old-Fashioned Holiday Market on Saturday. </caption1><photoCredit1>Bill Tarutis | For Times Leader </photoCredit1></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/web1_TTL120119HolidayMarket_7.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">Diamond City Partnership Executive Director Larry Newman, center, offers remarks with Greater Wilkes-Barre Chamber of Commerce Chief Operating Officer Lindsay Griffin, left, and City of Wilkes-Barre Special Events Coordinator Patty Hughes during a ribbon cutting ceremony marking the 10th anniversary of Small Business Saturday. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo2>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/web1_TTL120119HolidayMarket_7.jpg</photo2><caption2>Diamond City Partnership Executive Director Larry Newman, center, offers remarks with Greater Wilkes-Barre Chamber of Commerce Chief Operating Officer Lindsay Griffin, left, and City of Wilkes-Barre Special Events Coordinator Patty Hughes during a ribbon cutting ceremony marking the 10th anniversary of Small Business Saturday. </caption2><photoCredit2>Bill Tarutis | For Times Leader </photoCredit2></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/web1_TTL120119HolidayMarket_3.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">Tara Rhodes of Dream Vacations looks over jewelry items at the Bee Hive Gift Shop in downtown Wilkes-Barre during Small Business Saturday. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo3>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/web1_TTL120119HolidayMarket_3.jpg</photo3><caption3>Tara Rhodes of Dream Vacations looks over jewelry items at the Bee Hive Gift Shop in downtown Wilkes-Barre during Small Business Saturday. </caption3><photoCredit3>Bill Tarutis | For Times Leader </photoCredit3></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/web1_TTL120119HolidayMarket_1.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">Five-year-old Chelsea Hunsicker, of Sugar Notch, tells Santa what she wants for Christmas at the Old-Fashioned Holiday Market on Public Square in Wilkes-Barre on Saturday. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo4>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/web1_TTL120119HolidayMarket_1.jpg</photo4><caption4>Five-year-old Chelsea Hunsicker, of Sugar Notch, tells Santa what she wants for Christmas at the Old-Fashioned Holiday Market on Public Square in Wilkes-Barre on Saturday. </caption4><photoCredit4>Bill Tarutis | For Times Leader </photoCredit4></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/web1_TTL120119HolidayMarket_4.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">Denise Salus, of Larksville, left, and Pat Buerger, of Hunlock Creek, shop at the Old-Fashioned Holiday Market on Public Square in Wilkes-Barre on Saturday. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo5>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/web1_TTL120119HolidayMarket_4.jpg</photo5><caption5>Denise Salus, of Larksville, left, and Pat Buerger, of Hunlock Creek, shop at the Old-Fashioned Holiday Market on Public Square in Wilkes-Barre on Saturday. </caption5><photoCredit5>Bill Tarutis | For Times Leader </photoCredit5></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/web1_TTL120119HolidayMarket_2.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">Robert Kern, of Wilkes-Barre, looks over holiday wreaths at the Divine Occasions stand at the Old-Fashioned Holiday Market on Public Square in Wilkes-Barre on Saturday. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo6>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/web1_TTL120119HolidayMarket_2.jpg</photo6><caption6>Robert Kern, of Wilkes-Barre, looks over holiday wreaths at the Divine Occasions stand at the Old-Fashioned Holiday Market on Public Square in Wilkes-Barre on Saturday. </caption6><photoCredit6>Bill Tarutis | For Times Leader </photoCredit6></div></div>
<div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>By Geri Gibbons</p><p>For Times Leader</p></bylineMeta></div>

Holiday market celebrates Small Business Saturday