Texas Border Business
Residents can begin their 2019 holiday season fun by celebrating under and with the stars at Christmas in the Park, starting on Friday, December 6. The family-friendly and free winter festival is held at Municipal Park, right next to McAllen Veterans Memorial Stadium at 1921 Bicentennial Boulevard, and features food, fun, vendors, arts & crafts and entertainment for the whole family.
Thanks to Dr. Raul Peña and Peña Eye Institute, the Dallas Cowboys fan experience for this year will be unlike anything ever experienced by anyone before. For the first time ever, Jerry Jonesʼ Private Dallas Cowboys Tour Bus will be made available to the general public, right here in McAllen at Christmas in the Park. Attendees will be able to boar the bus, take pictures and see what life is like for those Dallas Cowboys and Jones when traveling on the bus. Additionally, the official Dallas Cowboys Tailgate Trailer, complete with a chef cooking on site, will be a part of the set-up at Christmas in the Park, as well.
“This is such an amazing offering for not only our Dallas Cowboys fans here in McAllen, the Rio Grande Valley, South Texas and northern Mexico, but really, for anyone who likes to see the spirit and camaraderie of professional sports teams,” said McAllen Mayor Jim Darling. “But I have to admit, I am extremely excited to see the Tailgate Trailer and I am sure that all of the amazing Rio Grande Valley a bar-be-quers out there are going to be getting tips and maybe even, giving tips. I might even take some notes about the bus and see if we can get one for the McAllen Mayor….” he added jokingly.
Of course, no McAllen Holiday Parade will be complete without the special appearance of the world-famous Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders and Rowdy, the Dallas Cowboys mascot, who will all be arriving for a special Meet & Greet with children from the Capable Kids Foundation, before their big presentation during the Saturday night parade.
“Being a part of the McAllen Holiday Parade, which has become such a special part of the Christmas tradition for families here in the Rio Grande Valley, is very exciting for me and the Peña Eye Institute,” said Dr. Peña. “We are proud of the eye care we provide and have had the privilege of serving our community. Being the Rio Grande Valley’s Official IntraLASIK Surgeon of the Dallas Cowboys is also something that is extremely special to us and our patients. Being able to extend the partnership we have with America’s Team, the Dallas Cowboys, to the festivities at Christmas in the Park and the parade is something we love to do.”
With all of the Dallas Cowboys excitement, parade organizers decided to give fans the ultimate opportunity: a chance to meet the stars and celebrities who will be a part of this year’s McAllen Holiday Parade, including the Dallas Cowboys. Fans must submit their best photos and/or videos via email to info@mcallen.net and say why they are the biggest fans of the Dallas Cowboys. The grand prize? A chance to meet the Dallas Cowboys! Other prizes include an autographed football by #54 Dallas Cowboys defensive linebacker and 2018 McAllen Holiday Parade alumni Jaylon Smith, provided by Reliant; a FRIO!™ family four-pack; VIP Stadium tickets for the McAllen Holiday Parade and other MHP merchandise. Deadline to enter is Friday, November 29, 2019.
Christmas in the Park will kick off with a carnival winter spectacular on Thursday, December 5 and now is the opportunity to purchase unlimited ride wristbands for $10, normally $20, valid for only that night. Tickets are on sale at McAllen I.S.D. schools, and at all three McAllen community centers: Lark Community Center, 2601 Lark Avenue; Las Palmas Community Center, 1921 N. 25th Street; and Palm View Community Center, 3401 Jordan Road W. Additionally, tickets are on sale at the McAllen Parks & Recreation Headquarters, located at 1000 S. Ware Road and at the McAllen Chamber of Commerce, located at 1200 Ash Avenue
Christmas in the Park runs Friday through Saturday with free admission and features food and artisan vendors, a carnival on Thursday and free concerts with Siggno on Friday night and Los Tigrillos on Saturday night.
This year’s McAllen Holiday Parade, presented by H-E-B will be held on Saturday, December 7, 2019, stepping off at 6:00 p.m. from McAllen Veterans Memorial Stadium, 2001 North Bicentennial Boulevard and is generally thought of as the best seat in the house. General admission and reserved tickets are now on sale. General admission tickets are $10 and are exclusively for the east side of the stadium, while reserved tickets are for $20 or $35 for the west side of the stadium.
Tickets may be purchased online at Ticketmaster.com; expect additional service charges or at face value at the McAllen Convention Center Box Office, located at 700 Convention Center Boulevard. The parade kicks off from the stadium and seats 13,000, so join neighbors, friends and visitors to McAllen to see the parade floats and the stars as they ride by or enjoy the magical snow that will be falling in the stadium, before the parade heads out onto Bicentennial for the mile and a half route. VIP chairs along the route are availabel for $8 or free seating is found on a first come basis. Go to www.mcallenholidayparade.com for tickets.
Anyone wanting to experience the McAllen Holiday Parade can do so as a spectator or in a unique, behind-the-scenes view as a volunteer. This year, anyone 16 and older who wants to be a part of the McAllen Holiday Parade and see how it comes to life can sign up at www.volunteersotx.org. For more information, call the McAllen Parks & Recreation Department at 956-681-3333.
The McAllen Holiday Parade is presented by H-E-B and powered by Bert Ogden & Fiesta Dealerships, Budweiser, Reliant and Driscoll Health System/Driscoll Health Plan. Other sponsors include: McAllen Public Utility; McAllen International Bridge System; McAllen Recycling; Metro McAllen; McAllen International Airport; McAllen Chamber of Commerce; Peña Eye Institute; McAllen Economic Development Corp.; Linebarger, Goggan, Blair &
Sampson; Sprint; IBC Bank; Gordita’s Doña Tota; AEP Texas; Chick-fil-A; PepsiCo.; Tres Lagos; Lacks; University of Texas-RGV; McAllen I.S.D.; Hermes; Laredo Taco Company/Stripes; Raising Cane’s Chicken Fingers; Carollo Engineers; Palenque Group; KSA Engineers; Macy’s; BBVA Compass; South Texas College; Med-Care EMS; Cigna HealthSpring; Plains Capital Bank; Raba Kistner Consultants, Inc.;Texas Lottery; Halff Associates, Inc.; Melden & Hunt; S&B Infrastructure, Ltd.; Juanita’s Foods; O’Reilly’s and U.S. Army.
Media partners for the event include: Telemundo 40 and TeleXitos; KGBT-Ch. 4 Valley Central and TV-Azteca; KRGV-Ch.5 and 5.2 Somos el Valle; Entravision TV and radio stations, including Q 94.5 THE ROCK STATION FM; 107.9 MIX FM; La TriColor 99.5 FM; La Suavecita 101.1 FM and television stations FOX-South Texas, The Valley’s CW 212, UniMas and of course, Univision-Valle del Rio Grande; R Communications stations including, Digital 101.5, Super Tejano 102.1, La Ley 102.5, KURV-710 AM and La Lupe 89.1; Wild 104/KISS 106 and KTEX from IHeartRadio; Univision Radio, including KGBT LA JEFA 98.5 / RECUERDO, 96.1 / UNIVISION DEPORTES 1530 AM; Más Music Radio; Advance News-Journal; El Periódico, U.S.A.; Revista Expresión; and The Monitor.
