Watch: support local and win during Share the Spirit campaign

Surf Coast Shire residents and visitors are being encouraged to embrace the spirit of Christmas this year, celebrating generosity, kindness and community connection, while supporting local businesses.

 

Our Share the Surf Coast Spirit campaign brings together local shopping, Christmas trees, Surfy Santa visits, festive activities and community celebrations across the shire.

Gift It Forward: celebrate the local businesses you love

On Monday 16 November, Council will launch Gift It Forward - a new buy local initiative celebrating the Christmas tradition of giving and sharing with others, while supporting local businesses.

Residents and visitors will be invited to nominate a Surf Coast business they love, say what makes it special and choose someone they’d love to share that experience with. If their Christmas wish is drawn, they’ll receive a $150 gift from that business for the person they nominated.

Five Christmas wishes will be drawn each week for four weeks, putting $3,000 directly into local businesses while helping more people discover the shops, makers, hospitality businesses and experiences available across the Surf Coast.

Follow @surfcoastbusinesscollective and @surfcoastshirecouncil on Instagram for details.

Decking the shire

Lorne Christmas tree

From early to mid-November, four-metre solar-lit Christmas trees will bring festive sparkle to five towns across the shire:

  • Aireys Inlet: Between the bottom shops and Painkalac Creek
  • Anglesea: Anglesea Shopping Village
  • Lorne: Next to the Lorne Visitor Information Centre on Mountjoy Parade
  • Torquay: In front of NAB on Gilbert Street
  • Winchelsea: Between the Anzac Memorial and Bluestone Bridge

Other festive touches will include stars on poles in Torquay town centre and banners in Lorne and Torquay. Also, in early December, Torquay’s IGA carpark area off Gilbert Street will be “yarn bombed” in a festive style.

Surfy Santa, Christmas house lights map and more

Surfy Santa 3.jpg

Also returning this festive season are Surfy Santa visits, the Christmas house lights map and other community celebrations.

Families can enjoy free photo opportunities with Surfy Santa at (times to be confirmed):

  • Torquay Visitor Information Centre on Saturday 12 December.
  • Lorne Visitor Information Centres on Saturday 5 December.

Children will be also able to drop off their letters to Santa at both centres between 14 November and 18 December and receive a reply before Christmas.

Find out about everything festive on our Share the Spirit website

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