Little North Pole Lights Up Saturday

By Katie McFadden

Enjoy Thanksgiving and then get ready for Christmas! Right after you wake up from your turkey coma and recover from Black Friday shopping, it’s time to head to Neponsit on Saturday afternoon for the annual lighting of the Little North Pole! The big show leading up to the lighting of Joe Mure’s festive home at 144-03 Neponsit Ave is this Saturday, November 25 at 3:30 p.m.

The winners of ABC’s “The Great Christmas Light Fight” are back at it for another year. The animatronics have been put into place, the garage scene is set, and every bulb is screwed in just right, just in time for Saturday’s lighting ceremony. This year’s event will be emceed by Joe Causi, Goumba Johnny and Sid & Friends. There will also be entertainment by local dance and school groups, up and coming artists, local singers, magician Cardone, and more. Food will be hot and ready, available with a donation of $20 for a bracelet, with goodies donated by Vetro, Matteo’s, Rocco’s of Roc Beach, Bagel Barista Station, Panino Rustico- Baya Bar, Lucy’s Sausage, A&S Pork Store, Brother’s Ravioli, Whit’s End, Madelaine Chocolate and more. After the lighting, Santa Claus will be coming to town with toys in hand for every child in attendance. And this year, the party will continue with an after party for the adults at Vetro Rooftop in Howard Beach.

This year’s lighting is set to be a special one as it benefits not only the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, the Little North Pole’s main charity, but also the Anthony Filippazzo Grant for Williams Syndrome Research and Rocco Pisani and Siobhan O’Sullivan’s charity for blood cancer research, tripling down on the effort to help kids going through a tough time. That’s why in addition to direct donations and donations for wristbands for food, a Breitling watch, typically valued at $4,600-$9,300 is up for raffle. Tickets are $100 each or four for $200 and will be sold in advance and at the event.

“We do this every year for two reasons,” Joe Mure said. “One, to put a smile on every child’s face and give them a memory of the holiday season that we know will last the rest of their lifetime and two, to help a special group of children that need help. Every penny raised goes to charity.”

And Mure couldn’t pull it off without some help. “People like Richie Keave, Angelo Guarino, Tony O, Angelo, Ed, Kevin, Brett, Bert, Anthony Shorts, Johnny Lights, Jodi, Frankie, Call-a-Head, Jets Towing, Mike Stages, DJ Mugsy, Juliana Fazio, the Graybeards, Kiwanis, the NYPD, FDNY, DSNY, and many more make this possible,” Mure said.

So head on up to 144-03 Neponsit Avenue on Saturday to enjoy the fun, but layer up as it’s expected to be chilly. There will also be special lighting events on Monday, November 27 for local special needs schools at 10:30 a.m. and the St. Camillus Special Olympics program at 6:30 p.m. and on Wednesday, November 29 at 6:30 p.m. for NYC’s foster children.

For more information or to make donation, check out: www.littlenorthpole.org