Many adults and children gathered around the Christmas tree outside Sherman Commons to sing carols and celebrate the second annual tree lighting ceremony last Tuesday night.

Sergio and Luisa Ragosta, owners of Amore Restaurant, got this year’s evergreen tree from the Sherman Volunteer Fire Department, and they added festive touches of sparkle and brilliance to the event.

How perfectly fitting it was to have the Lumos duo perform live at the ceremony. Sherman’s talented musicians, Susanna Palmer Marker and Al Burgasser, lead the carolers in singing many of the classics they’ve grown to love through the years such as “O Christmas Tree,” “Silent Night,” “We Wish You a Merry Christmas,” “White Christmas,” and “Jingle Bells.”

Children, and some adults, too, kept warm by sipping complimentary hot cocoa that Sacred Grounds Coffee Roasters made just for the special occasion.

After the tree lighting ceremony was over, the merriment continued inside Amore Restaurant where the food was great, the music was enchanting, and the atmosphere was filled with just as much cheerfulness.

This new community tradition that embraces some old-world traditions made the evening especially celebratory for everyone who participated. Smiles and goodwill were in abundance!

Article and photos by Alicia Sakal. Originally written for Town Tribune.