ROCHELLE — On Friday, the City of Rochelle hosted its annual Old Fashioned Christmas Walk in the downtown area. 

The event included Santa, carriage rides and crafts at the Flagg Township Museum; Snowmen at Night at the Flagg-Rochelle Public Library, the Light Up Lincoln Parade, reindeer at Terri Schaefer State Farm, lighting of the community tree, Rochelle Gratitude Award presentation and treats at City Hall; an appearance by the Snow Queen, and food and drink offerings by downtown businesses. 

“Welcome tonight to a wonderful festival,” Mayor John Bearrows said. “We've enjoyed it for many years and we really appreciate you folks coming out and braving the cold. It's the start of the Christmas season here in Rochelle.”

After Santa lit the tree at City Hall, Bearrows began his presentation of the Rochelle Gratitude Award. The award was started by Bearrows and his wife, Dina, 15 years ago to honor a friend, Lee Harris, in an effort to give the community someone to emulate for the next year. 

Past winners include Harris, the Rochelle VFW, the Rochelle Area Community Foundation, Ken Wise, the From the Heart committee, the Hub City Senior Center, Dan & Deb Wyka, the Rochelle Rotary Club, Kiwanis Golden K, the Rochelle Christian Food Pantry, Pal Colwill, Chuck & Lydia Roberts, Steve Strang, and HOPE of Ogle County.

“As I've always said, when we try to choose someone for this award, it's difficult,” Bearrows said. “It's never hard to come up with people that are well deserving. The hard part is narrowing it down to one. This community is so blessed to be giving, caring and sharing. It's just amazing to see the amount of giving this community does.”

Foundation for Focus House Executive Director Jeni Hardin was recognized as the recipient of this year’s Rochelle Gratitude Award. Along with her position at Focus House, Hardin dedicates time to community causes including the Rochelle Rotary Club and From the Heart. 

“This year's recipient has spent unknown hours helping those in need and she's never closed the door when asked for help,” Bearrows said. “I would say this year's recipient is known for her extremely positive attitude. She utilizes Facebook more than any other person to promote anything going on in our community. I've seen nothing less than giving, caring and sharing from her towards any community events. Congratulations to Jeni Hardin. May she be an example of selfless service to all of us in the coming year and a benchmark of excellence demonstrating service above self.” 

To close the event, Bearrows thanked city employees for their work to put on the night, including decorating the downtown area and participating in the parade. 

“Thank you all for being here,” Bearrows said. “I want to thank our city staff, including Rochelle Municipal Utilities, the City Street Department and the Rochelle Fire Department. They all decorated their units greatly and we're so proud of them. They put in a lot of effort. They go above and beyond their jobs on nights like tonight. We truly appreciate every one of them. We wish everybody a very Merry Christmas and a safe and happy holidays. Enjoy the evening.”