Festival of Lights Kick-Off Party Set for Nov. 28

Ahwatukee Foothills’ biggest event, the 14th Annual Festival of Lights Kick-Off Party will be held from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 28 in Desert Foothills Park, 1010 Marketplace SW. The one-day event draws more than 15,000 people and kicks off the holiday season with a party to celebrate the white light display along Chandler Boulevard.

The schedule for the day is as follows:

11 a.m. to 5 p.m., Community Performances.

11 a.m. to 6 p.m., Rides/Inflatables Open.

11 a.m. to 7 p.m., Beer Garden, Marketplace Street Fair, and Restaurant Row open.

5:15 to 6 p.m., Radio Disney’s “Next Big Thing” winners, Jonnie & Brookie, perform. Gilbert natives Jonnie and Brookie Allen (www.jonnieandbrookie.com) performed at the Festival of Lights last year during Radio Disney’s NBT competition, which is similar to American Idol in that the fans vote for the winner. Their performance will be sponsored by The SHE Forum – (www.sharinghealthyexperiences.com) – a program designed for girls in grades five through eight to combat bullying and “Mean Girl” syndrome.

6 to 6:15 p.m., Harley Davidson Parade.

6:15 to 7:30 p.m., The Sandrails perform. The Sandrails (www.myspace.com/thesandrailscom) will close the event playing favorites from the ‘70s, ‘80s, ‘90s and even a few ‘00s!

Wristbands for the kids are $20 in advance (before Thanksgiving) at www.FOLAZ.org or $25 on the day of the event. Wristbands bought in advance will be at Will Call at the event. All rides will close at 6 p.m. due to lighting issues. The event officially closes at 7 p.m.

The Marketplace Street Fair will feature nearly 100 artisans. Selling out earlier than ever, this street fair has become known Valleywide in the artist community as a great event for vendors. A preview list is online now at www.FOLAZ.org.

On the Marketplace Street Fair will be a holiday boutique benefiting The Festival of Lights’ charity partners, the Ahwatukee Kiwanis Chapter (www.kiwanisahwatukee.org) and Y-OPAS (Outreach Programs for Ahwatukee Seniors). They will be selling donated wreaths and other holiday décor and accessories with all proceeds going to the charities. Donations may be dropped off now at the Ahwatukee Foothills Family YMCA.

The traditional lighted Harley-Davidson Parade will descend upon the park about 6 p.m. with more than 100 riders escorting Santa and Mrs. Claus to declare the holiday season open.

Admission to the festival is free, and free shuttles will be provided by the Kyrene School District and will run from Altadeña Middle School, 14620 S. Desert Foothills Parkway, and the Ahwatukee Foothills Family YMCA, 1030 E. Liberty Lane. A shuttle map is available at www.FOLAZ.org.

For complete details, visit www.FOLAZ.org or call (480) 270-4FOL (4365).

Entertainment schedule

11 to 11:30 a.m., Center Point Dance

11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., Cinderella Youth Development Scholarship Program

12:30 to 1 p.m., Desert Sun Performing Arts

1 to 2 p.m., FootKlan

2 to 3 p.m., Ahwatukee Foothills The Nutcracker Ballet

3 to 3:30 p.m., Ahwatukee Children’s Theater

3:30 to 5 p.m., Kimberly Lewis School of Dance

5:15 to 6 p.m., Jonnie and Brookie

6:15 to 7:30 p.m., The Sandrails

Performances are subject to change. Visit www.folaz.org for updates and links to performer sites.