Star-studded Christmas events planned for Thursday in Palm Springs

Palm Springs will celebrate the holiday season in style Thursday with a bevy of Christmas events, including a Christmas tree auction for charity and the lighting of the city’s 22-foot-tall Holiday Tree.

Starting at 4 p.m. the Hard Rock Hotel will host a holiday boutique featuring mini-trees and wreaths, with proceeds going to ACT for MS, a nonprofit that supports strength-building programs for MS patients.

Supermodel and Palm Springs resident Beverly Johnson will then join Mayor Robert Moon for ACT for MS’s Celebrity Holiday Tree Live Auction and Fundraiser, titled “A Stroll Down Christmas Tree Lane.”

Trees decorated by well-known designers and sponsored by local celebrities will be auctioned off, including trees bearing the names of Johnson, Barry Manilow, Carol Channing, and Fred Williamson.

“No one celebrates the holidays with more style than Palm Springs and we are thrilled Christmas Tree Lane will return to the City for a third successful year with the fabulous Beverly Johnson,” said event chairwoman
Linda Williamson.

“When it comes to caring and compassion for those in need of a helping hand, Palm Springs truly is like no place else.”

Johnson will also be at Frances Stevens Park for the lighting of Palm Springs’ 22-foot tall Christmas tree, which will be adorned with thousands of energy efficient lights. The lighting will include appearances from Palm
Springs native and boxer Timothy Bradley, local philanthropist Nelda Linsk, Palm Springs Police Chief Bryan Reyes, and the Palm Springs City Council.

The park will also be the site of the Holiday Banner Awards, celebrating the work of about 50 students who created original designs lining Palm Canyon Drive through the holiday season.

Students from Kindergarten to 12th grade hand-painted the approximately 100 banners featured along Palm Canyon under the theme “Winter Holidays, Palm Springs Style.”

“We are thrilled to celebrate the incredible efforts of these talented students who bring our residents and visitors so much joy every year with their uniquely original designs during the holiday season,” said Joy Meredith, who co-founded the city’s Holiday Banner Program. “These artistic banners are truly a part of the magic that makes Palm Springs like no place else and I invite everyone in the Coachella Valley to visit downtown this holiday season to see them for yourselves.”