Ballymena is gearing up for a festive treat this weekend, as the annual Jingle All the Way Day is back with a bang. The event promises a lot of fun and entertainment for the whole family, while also raising funds for the Northern Ireland Children’s Hospice.
Organised by the dedicated volunteers of Ballymena NI Hospice Support Group, Jingle All the Way was established in 2017 and has become a tradition and central part of Christmas celebrations for many local families.
Taking place at Harmony Hub, Broadway, in Ballymena town centre on Saturday 2nd December, people from near and far are welcome to join in the Jingle fun from 10:00am through until 3:30pm. The streets will be filled with festive hits from DJ Roy Bell, and the sound of angelic voices singing as local school choirs perform, while Superheroes, children's characters, face painting, and of course, the ever-popular Santa Bus will provide many memory making moments for the little ones.
Santa Bus & Town Centre Tours
This year a single story coach has been kindly provided by local company Etherson Travel which offers a range of travel options including coach, minibus and taxi.
Santa will of course be onboard, and will enjoy welcoming travellers from 10:30am for town tours on his special bus! The Santa Bus will leave approximately every 15 minutes (traffic permitting) from Broadway, beside Harmony Hub.
Santa will need his lunch, so there will be a break in trips between 12:30pm and 1:15pm, but then it’s back to spreading Christmas joy around the town!
You do not have to book, just turn up and enjoy the craic! Santa's tours are FREE of charge but any donations for the Northern Ireland Children's Hospice will be gratefully received.
Commenting ahead of this weekend's event, Elaine McBride, vice-chair of Ballymena Hospice Support Group and team member said:
"This is our 7th Jingle Day in Ballymena! We started back in 2017 and since then the Ballymena community has fundraised over £300K for the NI Children’s Hospice and their Jingle All the Way Christmas campaign.
"The local community have been extremely generous in supporting this amazing charity year in and year out. We’ve managed to bring local businesses, schools, groups, teams and individuals together to raise funds and awareness of this charity.
"Jingle Day 2023 will be amazing, we are so looking forward to seeing our school choirs perform, to see our amazing Santa Bus take excited children and families around the town, to welcome our Christmas characters and our Support Star Wars guests, and to feel the buzz in Ballymena, all while raising money and awareness for NICH.
"The NICH receives a small amount of funding from the government so they rely on corporate and community fundraising to allow them to support and care for over 400 children and their families throughout NI. It is the only Children’s Hospice in NI and our most vulnerable families depend on their support. We will continue to Jingle to help keep those doors open.
"Thank you to everyone who has supported the NICH and will continue to do so."
Jingle Day Programme
10:00am - 3:30pm | DJ Roy Bell
10:30am - 12:30pm & 1:15pm - 3:45pm | Santa Bus tours departing Broadway every 15 minutes
11:00am - 2:00pm | Local primary school choirs
11:00am - 2:00pm | Face painting & balloon modelling
11:00am - 4:00pm | Star Wars characters
11:30am - 1:30pm | Christmas charactees
Local Primary School Choir Performances
• Ballymena Primary School - 11:00am - 11:30pm
• Carniny Primary School - 11:30am - 12:00pm
• Maine Integrated Primary School - 12:00pm - 12:30pm
• Clough Primary School - 12:30pm - 1:00pm
• Diamond Primary School - 1:00pm -1:30pm • Braidside Integrated Primary School - 1:30pm - 2:00pm
Join the fun this Saturday as Ballymena Jingles All the Way for Northern Ireland Children's Hospice!
It will be a fantastic day filled with family fun.