It's time to Light Up Leeton 

The event will commence at 4.30pm with the traditional Rotary ham raffle. 

While trying to win a ham residents can patronise the various stalls and enjoy the entertainment. 

The large variety of stalls will cater for the whole family, with face painting, sample bags, balloons, merry-go-round, jumping castle, the Lion's train and more on offer.

There will also be plenty to eat, as well as entertainment as part of the community concert from 6pm.

Performers, schools and dance studios from throughout the shire will be taking part. 

This year Leeton's Jake Speer from Home & Away will join with Barb Wright to sing the opening numbers while Santa, Mrs Claus and friends are arriving at Mountford Park. 

Families have been encouraged to bring their own rugs and chairs and enjoy a picnic tea on the lawns. 

All stalls at the carnival are operated by not-for-profit local community groups and service clubs.

As soon as it is dark bus drivers will again donate their time and buses to take everyone on a tour to see the Christmas lights.

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THE Light Up Leeton (LUL) community concert provides an ideal opportunity to showcase Leeton shire talent and gives performers a chance to gain valuable experience before a large audience.

LUL chairman Carl King was looking forward to the performances.

"The community concert is the drawcard for the Christmas carnival and is such a success because of the high quality performances from such a wide range of the community," he said. 

Concert conveyor Julie Maytom said the committee had a good response from schools and community groups wanting to take part.

"All the time slots are now full," she said.

This year Leeton's Jake Speer from Home & Away will join with Barb Wright to sing the opening numbers while Santa, Mrs Claus and friends are arriving.

The concert will also showcase talents by Murrami, Wamoon, Yanco and Leeton Parkview Public schools, St Joseph's Primary School, Leeton High School, St Francis De Sales Regional College Band, Art of Performance, Celtic Energy Highland Dance, Leeton Ballet School, Di Salvatore Dance Academy, Charlotte Maskus and Tess Nolan and others. 

The concert will feature the Leeton Chamber of Commerce Love Leeton Christmas Promotion Draw and, of course, the official turning on of the lights on dark.

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THIS year the Light Up Leeton Committee has done away with the best individual residential display to promote more overall participation and encourages everyone to get involved in lighting up their home and street.

Prizes awarded this year will go to the best street and best business. 

The best street could be one string of lights that each resident puts up. 

The committee has decided to make the evening of the Light Up Leeton community concert and Christmas carnival the designated judging night. 

Trophies will be presented to the winners at Leeton Shire Council's ordinary meeting on December 18.

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THE Light Up Leeton Committee has again decided to support the upcoming Leeton SunRice Festival and put forward an entrant in the Ambassador Quest. 

The Leeton Soldiers Club have come on board as a co-partner. 

The committee are finalising details and some of the activities that will include a major raffle, junior disco, trivia night, street stall and the treasure chest key promotion.

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EVERY year the community continues to be amazed at the generosity of the bus companies that donate their time and the use of their buses to ferry people around the town to look at the lights.

On behalf of the residents of Leeton the Light Up Leeton Committee says a big thank you to all the bus companies, the drivers and also the guides on the buses.

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AS LIGHT Up Leeton approaches the committee would like to recognise its volunteers that have been helping since its early days. 

It is individuals like this that tirelessly work behind the scenes to support events and the community in general, and that often go unrecognised. 

Thank you also to all those individuals that have come and gone from the committee over the years, contributing in various ways to the success of the Light Up Leeton festivals. 

The 2013 committee also welcomes and thanks a number of new volunteers who have joined the committee for the first time.

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THE Rotary ham carnival is now firmly fixed as an important part of the Light Up Leeton Christmas carnival and concert.

The hams carnival is a big drawcard and adds an extra dimension to the attraction of the festivities. 

Light Up Leeton committee acknowledges the significant part it plays in the carnival and is grateful for the partnership formed with the Rotary Club of Leeton.

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WITH only 16 days until Light up Leeton, it is time to start thinking about decorating your home or business in a Christmas theme. 

Leeton businesses are stocking up with Christmas lights and decorations and the Light Up Leeton committee has encouraged everyone to "light up". 

Leeton Shiree Council events co-ordinator Stephanie Puntoriero said there were ways around avoiding a higher electricity bill.

"Solar-powered Christmas lights are a fantastic alternative for those in the community who may be concerned about the cost of their power bill'," she said.

"The best thing about those is you don't even have to remember to turn them on."

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THE official turning on of lights at the Light Up Leeton concert and carnival will set the scene for the Lions Club of Leeton, who will begin ferrying people around town over the coming month on its train to see the spectacular lights. 

This unique form of transport to view the lights has become popular as it allows families and groups to join together and experience the lights in a fun and unusual way.

The train will run on the last two weeks before Christmas, every Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. 

The first night will be December 10 and, if there is enough interest, it will run a special tour on Christmas Eve. 

Tours depart from the Leeton Market Plaza car park at 8.30pm and run for about two hours.

For more information and bookings contact the Riverina Community College or the Lions Club on 0427 137 014.

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ALL of the money raised at the Leeton Up Leeton Carnival goes back into the community in the form of lights and decorations around the town, main street and in the park. 

Over the years the committee has purchased a huge variety of banners, bunting, silhouettes, wooden cut-outs, decorations, backdrops and lights to help decorate Leeton. 

In 2011 the committee purchased UV resistant tinsel and re-covered the existing roof top decorations. 

Solar lights were also purchased and added to the roof-top decorations, giving them a new lease on life. 

The committee recognises that many business owners within Pine Avenue enjoy having a Santa placed on their roof, so it is important the Santa's not only look good, but that they can also withstand the elements.

This year the committee have used some of the funds to purchase a range of costumes, wigs and accessories to be worn in the parade.

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LEETON shire businesses are again expected to shine as part of Light Up Leeton. 

The Light Up Leeton Committee and Sam's Tile & Light Centre have joined forces to encourage as many businesses as possible to make an effort with Christmas decorations. 

Sam's Tile & Light Centre will be offering a hamper of goodies valued at over $300 to the best display. 

Businesses are encouraged to leave their lights on during the month of December in order to continue to entertain residents and the many visitors that come to town throughout this period.

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OVER the past few years, the number of residents registering their houses for the map has significantly decreased to the point that a map was unable to be produced in 2010. 

In 2011, the committee identified a manageable solution and, so for the first time in the 16 year history of the event, the Light Up Leeton event went online.

A new website was developed where business owners and residents can register their address online. 

A map of the region is then populated with the information, showing which addresses in the region are registered to have Christmas lights on display. People can then print the map or access it live online at anytime. 

The committee has urged residents to register their homes, schools and businesses online at www.lightupleeton.org or by calling or texting the address through to 0448 623 049.

To keep up with what is happening visit www.facebook.com/LightUpLeeton.

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THE list of businesses sponsoring the Light Up Leeton promotion has grown this year. 

The committee welcomes new sponsors: Pinnacle HPC Accountants, Milbrae Quarries and Maguires Accountants and Advisors on board. 

Thanks also go to: Leeton Shire Council, The Irrigator, Sam's Tile & Light Centre, Essential Energy, Murray Mallee Training Company, Leeton Mitre 10, 2RG, WIN, 99.7 StarFM, CNL Catering Pty Ltd, Rotary Club of Leeton and Weston & Weston Refrigeration & Airconditioning for their support.

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THIS year marks 18 years of Light Up Leeton. 

This is a huge achievement and shows that this is an event that the community treasures and want to see continue. 

As the event continues to move from strength to strength, the committee recognised that the time had come to keep up with the technology world. 

We now have our own Facebook page and also our new web site, which residents and business owners can use to register their homes for the purposes of creating a map for the event and for use through the month of December.

The beauty about the website is that the data is live and so will always be up to date. 

Even if people only remember to put their lights up the day before the event, it still won't be too late to register their homes. 

Over the years the committee has endeavoured to come up with ideas and ways to make registration for the map as easy as possible and we feel that this website helped achieve this.

Our Facebook page also continues to be very popular with just under 400 people regularly following our updates and posts. 

It's a great way for the community to keep up to date with what we are doing and see what is in store for the 2013 event. 

As a committee, we have been concerned about the dwindling number of lights on display over the past few years. 

Once known as the best lit town in the area it appears as if neighbouring towns are catching up to us and challenging Leeton for the title. 

Undoubtedly the cost of electricity is a concern to us all, but it's a proven fact that a few strings of the low wattage coloured Christmas lights will not draw any more power than a normal overhead light in an average size room. 

Solar lighting is also becoming increasingly popular each year with the committee even trialling some new solar powered lights for this years event.

With our new technology being introduced and with the ease of access to solar lighting, it is hoped that more people within the region will really get into the spirit of the event this year, lighting up Leeton better than ever before. 

If everyone put just a string of lights across their front guttering it would lift Leeton back to the top of the Light Up ladder in the area. 

One part of the event that is not slowing down is the Christmas concert and carnival in Mountford Park incorporating the Leeton Rotary Club's hams carnival. 

Concert convenor Julie Maytom has been busy this year and it looks like being another outstanding array of talent to kick off Light Up Leeton 2013. 

This night brings together a large section of the community to work together to help create tremendous community spirit and goodwill. 

The committee thanks all the schools, students, parents, organisations, clubs, businesses, bus companies and residents for their support. 

This year's we continue with the Light Up Leeton street spectacular. 

The idea behind this initiative was to see the business houses within Leeton's CBD lit up like never before, thanks to the support of the team at Sam's Tile and Light Centre. 

This will give the community even more to see throughout the month of December with a large number of businesses already registering their lights with us.

The Light Up Leeton Committee would also like to thank all of our very generous sponsors, especially our major sponsors Leeton Shire Council and The Irrigator. 

This year we are pleased to announce we have a total of thirteen sponsors and we are very grateful for their generosity and support. 

A special thanks goes to Leeton police for their help and support on the day.

I personally take this opportunity to thank the organising committee, service clubs, businesses and home owners who decorate and everyone who is participating to make this special month of December a true community christmas.

Finally, we sincerely thank the businesses that have supported this feature. 

It is because of their generosity and support that we have been able to give so much exposure to making this year a momentous celebration.

Carl King

Chairman

Light Up Leeton Committee