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With lights and some paints, downtown association seeks to bring cheer to city center

 A Hanukkah candle painted on the window of a local downtown business. (Courtesy/Caren Ann Jackson)

This winter, the Salem Main Street Association decided downtown needed more than white lights to mark the holiday season.

Hoping to inspire some cheer in the midst of a pandemic and a difficult year, the association turned to high school artists.

“We’re just trying to do all we can to create a festive atmosphere to get people to go downtown to help those businesses,” said Tom Nabhan, a board member of the association.

This year, the association hired 10 high school artists from West Salem, South Salem and McNary high schools to paint the windows of local businesses with images and scenes of holidays from different cultures and parts of the world.

For the project, the association has partnered with the Salem Multicultural Institute, which puts on the annual World Beat Festival.

Among the holidays included are Diwali, Thanksgiving, Hanukkah, Winter Solstice, Christmas, St. Lucia’s Day and others.

Nabhan said that the association paid each of the students $50 (along with materials costs) to design and paint the scenes from holidays from different cultures and parts of the world.

For instance, the windows of AC + Co, an architecture company located at 363 State St., depict Hogmanay, a Scottish celebration of the last day of the year.

The owners of the JCPenney building, which is currently vacant and for sale, agreed to have its large windows painted by the students. In the vacant Hallmark store across the street in the Salem Center Mall is an exhibit featuring attire, symbols and information about the holidays.

Hazel Patton, the interim executive director of the Salem Main Street Association, said that volunteers are still putting up white LED lights at about 50 downtown businesses and hope to have them finished by this week.

“Downtown should really sparkle, especially in the evening,” she said. “Especially when it gets dark.”

A seasonal painting on the window of a downtown business. (Courtesy/Caren Ann Jackson)

A seasonal painting on the window of a downtown business. (Courtesy/Caren Ann Jackson)

A painting depicting Kwanzaa on the window of a downtown business. (Courtesy/Caren Ann Jackson)

Decorations for the Scottish holiday Hogmanay on the outside of a downtown business. (Courtesy/Caren Ann Jackson)

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