Fort Wayne’s gateway to the holiday season, “Christmas on Broadway,” returns November 20, 2026.
Christmas on Broadway news release:
22nd Annual “Christmas on Broadway”
- Junior Achievement of Northern Indiana will be highlighted as this year’s charitable organization
- Junior Achievement Youth from Across Northern Indiana to Light the Spectacular Colorado Blue Spruce
- Nationally Acclaimed Concordia Lutheran High School Marching Band to Lead the Christmas Parade Down Broadway
- Santa and Mrs. Claus to Arrive on a Spectacular Sleigh and Reindeer Float Accompanied by a Vintage Firetruck from Fort Wayne Firefighters Museum
- Exciting Polar Express Train to Offer Children Rides
- 21Alive to Telecast Expanded Live Coverage from Broadway Plaza
- WOWO to Raise Funds for Penny Pitch/Casey Hendrickson to Broadcast Live
- Journal Gazette to Print, “Color the Christmas Tree” Entry Form in Its November 14th Edition
- Fort Wayne Komets, Lake City Bank, Bruce Dye, IU Health, Heller Homes, Prairie Farms Dairy, Deister Machine Company, Kelley Automotive, Keith Byers, CME Construction, Mudrack Tree Service, Kissinger Electric, Graycraft Signs Fort Wayne, and Downtown Fort Wayne to kick-off Fort Wayne’s holiday season on Friday, November 20, 2026
Fort Wayne, Indiana (November 9, 2026) – Fort Wayne’s gateway to the holiday season, “Christmas on Broadway,” returns Friday, November 20, 2026, beginning at 5:00 p.m. Now in its 22nd year, this beloved communitywide celebration will once again welcome families from throughout Northeast Indiana to begin the holiday season together. Junior Achievement of Northern Indiana will serve as this year’s featured charitable organization, with children from Junior Achievement participating in both the parade and the lighting of the tree. The tree lighting and brilliant fireworks display will take place in the heart of the ’07 Neighborhood on the Broadway Plaza, in front of the Shine & Hardin building.
“This year, ‘Christmas on Broadway’ is proud to highlight Junior Achievement of Northern Indiana and the important role it plays in preparing young people for their futures. Junior Achievement provides young people with meaningful educational experiences that help them develop the skills, knowledge and confidence they need to succeed in school, work and life,” said event coordinators Steve Shine and Tom Hardin of Shine & Hardin, LLP, who originated the iconic local holiday celebration 22 years ago.
Karen Cooper, Chief Program & Operations Officer of Junior Achievement of Northern Indiana, expressed her appreciation for Junior Achievement as being selected as the Charitable Organization spotlighted as part of this year’s Christmas on Broadway. “The future of our community and country rests with today’s youth and Junior Achievement is instrumental in building the core principles that help guide our youth towards success. It is fitting that Junior Achievement is such an integral part of a celebration that is focused on families and children in our community, which is the centerpiece of ‘Christmas on Broadway’,” said Cooper.
The nationally acclaimed Concordia Lutheran High School Marching Band, under the direction of Band Leader Jennifer Porath, will begin the evening’s festivities by leading the parade down Broadway while performing music of the holiday season. Following the band will be a 1942 antique firetruck housed at the Fort Wayne Firefighters Museum, aboard which will be children from Junior Achievement. Also participating in the parade will be proud members of surrounding neighborhood associations. The parade will reach an exciting crescendo with the arrival of a 10-foot tall, 22-foot-long sleigh and reindeer float, uniquely constructed by Mark Gray, owner of Graycraft Signs Fort Wayne, with Santa Claus himself manning the reigns.
The parade route will begin at Broadway and Creighton and conclude at the Broadway Plaza, where the magnificent 40-foot Colorado spruce will be illuminated at 6:00 p.m. against a backdrop of fireworks and Christmas music.
Upon arriving at the Plaza, Santa Claus and his helpers will greet the children in attendance and hand out Santa hats and candy canes. Santa will also be joined by one of his reindeer, giving children the opportunity to pet his four-legged helper and, for many, experience meeting a live reindeer for the very first time.
Children will also be treated to rides on the exciting miniature train aptly named the Polar Express, located in the east side parking lot adjacent to the Shine & Hardin building. The Polar Express features an engine and three passenger cars, Christmas decorations and holiday music.
Food and beverage trucks will again be on-site to make the holiday revelers’ visit to Broadway Plaza even more enjoyable. A variety of food and beverages will be available throughout the evening. Food truck service will include Coterie Pizza, well known throughout the surrounding area for preparing pizza in its master-crafted Italian stone oven, Smoking J’s, whose offerings include egg rolls, smoked meats and mac and cheese, and Travelin’ Tom’s Coffee Truck, featuring a variety of items including hot specialties such as latte, cappuccino, mocha, hot chocolate and more
“We are extremely proud to once again have the support of so many prominent businesses and individuals who help make this annual holiday tradition possible. Their continued commitment to ‘Christmas on Broadway’ allows thousands of people from across our community to experience the spectacular sight of a 40-foot Colorado Blue Spruce adorned with more than 40,000 colored lights being illuminated simultaneously with a stunning fireworks display,” said Shine and Hardin.
Sponsors for this year’s celebration include the Fort Wayne Komets (David Franke), Lake City Bank (Eric Ottinger and Cammy Treadway), Bruce Dye, IU Health (Brian Bauer), Heller Homes (Mark and Shelley Heller), Prairie Farms Dairy (Rob Ruppert), Deister Machine Company (Mark Deister), Kelley Automotive (Tom Kelley), Keith Byers, CME Construction (Ryan Hellinger), Mudrack Tree Service (Dan Mudrack), Kissinger Electric (Jon Kissinger), and Graycraft Signs Fort Wayne (Mark Gray). The media sponsors are 21Alive and Federated Media (WOWO).
This year the Komets will be represented at the celebration by their popular mascot, Icy, who will join families and children at the Broadway Plaza.
The family holiday tradition, held each year on the Friday before Thanksgiving, will once again be telecast live on 21Alive beginning at 4:00 p.m., when the station’s entire twohour, 30-minute news block will originate live from the Broadway Plaza. The expanded coverage will allow viewers throughout Northeast Indiana who are unable to attend in person to share the excitement as Fort Wayne officially begins its holiday season.
21Alive will again be joined as a media sponsor by the City’s top-rated cluster of radio stations owned by Federated Media, including WOWO, 97.3 WMEE, 1380 The Fan, 98.9 The Bear, and K-105. The annual WOWO Penny Pitch, one of the community’s longestrunning holiday charitable traditions, will kick off at 3:00 p.m. on November 20, with Casey Hendrickson broadcasting live from the Broadway Plaza. Motorists traveling Broadway will have the opportunity to contribute to the WOWO Penny Pitch as they pass the Plaza by dropping donations into buckets held by members of the WOWO staff.
Vice President and General Manager of 21Alive, Chris Fedele, said, “21Alive takes great pride in providing our viewers with extensive coverage of ‘Christmas on Broadway,’ which has become known as the gateway event to start the holiday season. 21Alive places great importance on family entertainment and, of course, ‘Christmas on Broadway’ is one of Fort Wayne’s most family-centric celebrations. We are proud to bring the festivities into the living rooms of our viewers.”
Ben Saurer, Vice President and General Manager of the Federated Media Radio Stations, stated that this year’s “Christmas on Broadway” will help kick off the 79th annual WOWO Penny Pitch, that being one of the longest and continuous charities in Fort Wayne. “Part of our 100-plus-year heritage of WOWO serving the tri-state area has been WOWO’s involvement in premier community-wide events, such as ‘Christmas on Broadway.’ We value our partnership with the organizers of ‘Christmas on Broadway’ in being able to provide extensive media coverage of this holiday tradition.
The computer center located within the Shine & Hardin building, which during the Spring, Summer and Fall controls the multiple colorized patterns of the Broadway Plaza fountain, will again provide a variety of lighting displays each evening when the tree is lit. The electrical engineering for the tree and its vibrant multi-colored displays has been designed by Mark Mongold of Kissinger Electric of Columbia City.
The excitement will begin even before the night of the celebration when Mudrack Tree Service transports the spectacular Colorado Blue Spruce to the Broadway Plaza on Monday, November 16. Mudrack Tree Service will place the tree upon the large tree stand constructed by CME Construction.
The tree’s arrival on Monday, November 16, will be covered live on 21Alive beginning at 5:00 a.m. during 21Alive’s Morning News, along with radio coverage on WOWO, 92.3 FM/1190 AM. Throughout the week, crews from A Yard Apart will prepare the tree for its lighting by placing more than 40,000 lights on its branches while also readying Broadway Plaza for the thousands of spectators anticipated to attend. The entire event site will again be overseen and managed through the efforts of the Associated Builders and Contractors Indiana Kentucky Chapter under the supervision of Felisha Anderson, Director of Council
Management.The Broadway Plaza is located at the mid-point of the Broadway Corridor. To the north of the Broadway Plaza is Electric Works, Fort Wayne’s largest redevelopment project in the City’s history. To the south is Quimby Village, home to the Clyde, one of Fort Wayne’s most unique music venues. The Broadway Corridor is bordered by nine neighborhoods: Broad River, Creighton-Home, Historic South Wayne, Historic Oakdale, Fairfield, Illsley Place, Williams-Woodland, West Rudisill Neighborhood Association, and the Michigan Avenue Neighborhood Association.
On Saturday, November 14, the Journal Gazette will feature a full-page outline of the Christmas tree, providing children of all ages with the opportunity to create and color their own rendering of the Christmas tree on Broadway. The three top entries will win Visa Gift Cards from Lake City Bank and prizes from Federated Media and 21Alive. All entries must be received on or before Wednesday, December 16, 2026, and mailed to WPTA-TV, 3401 Butler Road, Fort Wayne, Indiana 46808. Winners will be announced on Thursday morning, December 24, 2026, Christmas Eve, on 21Alive’s Morning News, WOWO 92.3 FM/1190 AM, and “Christmas Time with Steve Shine,” to be telecast on 21Alive. This year marks the 41st annual airing of “Christmas Time with Steve Shine,” continuing more than four decades of sharing holiday cheer with local celebrities and guests.
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