To the Editor:

As part of Altamont’s Festival of Lights events this year, an anonymous group of elves, all from the village, secretly wandered down every street in the village on a Friday evening in late December to carefully consider who shall be the worthy winners of the revived Holiday Decorating contest.

Things haven’t changed, even since last held years ago. As usual, the selection proved most difficult, with many diverse and beautiful, deserving choices in both categories. The judges again had difficulty coming to consensus.

However, through the use of a complicated, double super-secret weighted scoring matrix, the following winners were selected:

In the residential category, first place is awarded to the Guyons at 19 Gregg Road. Second place goes to the Megyesi home at 153 Maple Avenue, and the Kerr home at 6 Indian Maiden Lane is the third-place winner.

In the commercial category, the task was again no easier. A prize will be awarded to the winning business — the Spinning Room yarn shop.

We congratulate the winners and thank all folks who brightened up the village this season.

We also want to recognize both John Sands and all who helped him in hanging the festive holiday sprays of pine boughs and red ribbon throughout the village again this year, as he does every year, and Jon Phillips of Phillips Hardware who not only organized the car parade, but also is donating prizes for the decorating challenge.

On another housekeeping note, the Community Tree in Orsini Park will be undecorated and taken down on Saturday, Jan. 2. If you want your ornament back, please remove it by then if reachable. The residual ornaments will be carefully removed and placed in a box in the gazebo if you wish to pick up your ornament later or couldn’t reach it on the tree. The box will be in the gazebo until Jan. 8.

Dean Whalen

Chairman

Altamont Community

Tradition Holiday

Decorating Committee