Light Up Eau Claire – the city’s New Year’s Eve celebration – hasn’t even been held for the second time and it has already won a statewide award. Earlier this month, Visit Eau Claire received the Wisconsin Association of Convention and Visitors Bureaus’ 2017 Trailblazer Award in Outstanding Partnerships for the inaugural Light Up Eau Claire, which rang in 2016 in downtown Eau Claire. The celebration – which will be held for the second time this year beginning at 6:30pm Dec. 31 – includes a lantern parade, lots of live music, and midnight fireworks. “We are proud of the partnerships we have generated while forming this event with local businesses, including Chippewa Valley Museum, Children’s Museum of Eau Claire, Eau Claire Regional Arts Center, Downtown Eau Claire Inc., Eau Claire Parks and Recreation, UW-Eau Claire, and Community for the Confluence,” Visit Eau Claire said in a press release. All proceeds from the event go toward the Confluence Arts Center, which will open in 2018. To learn more about Light Up Eau Claire, visit visiteauclaire.com/lightupeauclaire.