By RHEA-FRANCES TETLEY
Staff Writer

The Crestline Chamber of Commerce has announced that nominations for the upcoming November election for three open board seats are now underway.
If you are interested in running for one of the three-year positions on the board to help keep the economy of the community of Crestline thriving and help plan the events for the community for this next year, now is the time to submit a short bio and statement of your desire to run to either the chamber office at 24385 Lake Drive, Crestline or through their website, https://www.Crestlinechamber.org on or before the Oct. 31 deadline. There is a QR code on the website with additional information. The nominating committee is Nathan Godwin, Grayson Lopez, Libby Hayes, and another community member that had not yet been confirmed at press time.
The only requirement for running is that you belong to the Crestline Chamber of Commerce and have the desire to volunteer your time to help the community. There are various categories of membership for anyone with a desire to assist the chamber, whether you are a business owner, an STR owner, a nonprofit organization, a mountain resident, or a friend of the Crestline community. Now is also a great time to renew your membership as the new budgets and programs are being discussed for this next year. The election will be held in late November, with the candidates introduced at the next chamber meeting.
There are two upcoming events for the community. The Trick or Treat the Merchants will be on Saturday, Oct. 29 from 2 to 5 p.m. in both Top Town along Crest Forest Drive and Lake Drive through Lake Gregory Village. Participating merchants will have the Trick or Treat the Merchants poster in their windows, welcoming Trick or Treaters.
The Top Town Fall Festival will be on Nov. 12 from 1 to 4 p.m. on Crest Forest Drive and is a family-friendly event with bounce houses, a balloon man and face painting, with music (sponsored by Lake Drive Hardware) and a beer garden (sponsored by So Cal Beer) and food. Crest Forest Drive from Highway 138 to the fire station will be closed for the festival by the CHP, so the kids’ favorite activity, chalk drawing on the roadway, will be occurring as well as some crafts. The whole family is invited to this free event. Parking is suggested at Mountain Life Church on Highway 138 and on Crest Forest Drive east of Highway 138.
The Crest Lights annual holiday lighting program is in full swing. There will be a different set of awards for decorated homes and businesses so they are not competing with each other. On Nov. 2, an email will be sent out with the categories for winning. On Nov. 22, the first “flip the switch” of the lights will take place and there will be kiosks in town for community voting for the best lighting displays; more information will be forthcoming as the holiday season approaches.
Our new 3rd District County Supervisor Dawn Rowe attended the October Corks & Hops and had a good time being shown around town by Mike Johnstone. The tour gave her a good idea of one of the programs the community is doing to encourage tourism. The Oct. 1 Cork & Hops also attracted the largest crowd the event has ever had.
Inspired by that success, the chamber is continuing in its plans to hold a Corks & Hops event inside the San Moritz Lodge on Feb. 18. By having it inside, the bands can perform better, and the weather will not be a factor in participants’ movement between the various tasting stations and the food trucks can be under the overhang if inclement weather occurs. However, historically, February often is quite a pleasant month, so anticipation is high for this first-time winter Corks & Hops, which will have a Mardi Gras theme since it is the Saturday before “Fat Tuesday.” They hope to coordinate with the STRs which are chamber members to encourage weekend stays.
The theme “Amazing Mountain Adventures” was announced for the 2023 Jamboree Days parade and weekend festivities. It is hoped by announcing it so soon that advanced advertising and planning can be done for parade floats and businesses can plan as well for the long weekend since July 4 is on a Tuesday in 2023.
The deadline for placing an ad in the Crestline Magazine is Oct. 29, with only a few spaces remaining; contact the chamber office immediately at (909) 338-2706, or through the website https://www.Crestlinechamber.org to place an ad. The winter edition of Crestline Magazine will be in mailboxes before Thanksgiving. This form of community promotion has been quite effective in the past, as the magazine is placed in visitor centers throughout Southern California and has brought the awareness of Crestline as a vacation destination into the minds of many who previously had been unaware of the town or its vacation amenities. It is also placed in almost every STR and is used by tourists as a guide to what to see and visit while in the mountains.
It was announced that the Lions Club is conducting a firewood raffle for a cord of firewood; tickets are $1 each and the drawing will be held at their meeting in November. The Dia de Los Muertos (Day of the Dead) observance will be held at Treasure Box on Saturday, Oct. 29 from 5 to 9 p.m. in remembrance of friends and family members who have died. Ofrendas will be set up to honor and remember relatives, the military, and children; there will be marigolds, a beer garden, and traditional music.
The Mountain History Museum, 27176 Peninsula Drive in Lake Arrowhead, is offering its second weekend of free activities for families and children in their “scary museum” from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. with the museum itself being open from 10:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Saturday and Sunday, Oct. 29 and 30. The museum will then be closed until the Friday, Saturday, and Sunday of Thanksgiving weekend, when it will be open from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. each day, weather permitting.
Crestline Chamber President Michelle Hake hoped the members of the community would remember to “shop on top” this holiday season because the town’s businesses have some of the most unique and imaginative gift items available and it helps “keep our mountain green; those are two longtime mountain advertising slogans that have proved to be true over the decades in helping to keep our local economy thriving.”