(Bonnets optional.)

Find a pair of colorful mittens, grab a hat and scarf, and warm up your vocal cords. This year, local zine Hidden Treasures invites you to revisit an old, but exciting, holiday tradition – caroling. Lori Schmidt, co-coordinator of the event, remembers a time when caroling was a tradition everyone enjoyed. “Every year when I was a kid, people would go caroling and it was just so magical,” she says. But somehow it has fallen out of the holiday mainstream, and Schmidt has decided to do something about it. This is where you come in. On December 21, there will be two groups of carolers spreading joy throughout the Chippewa Valley. Invite your friends, family members, and co-workers (the more the merrier), and hook up with either the Eau Claire or Chippewa Falls caroling contingent, then sing to your heart’s content (singing on-key is not a pre-requisite). Songbooks, which will be provided by Hidden Treasures, consist of well-known carols, classic holiday favorites, and kid-friendly tunes. Dress warmly in festive clothing, and bring lanterns, candles, or flashlights. If you can’t make it out on December 21, that’s OK. “Our goal is to encourage anyone anywhere to get a group together and go caroling,” Schmidt says. “We just want to bring back a tradition that is lost.”

    Hidden Treasures’ First Annual Hometown Caroling • Monday, Dec. 21 • meet at Boyd Park on East Side Hill (1100 block of Main St) or Micon Cinemas (Chippewa Mall Dr) • 6-8pm • all ages • 835-0611