With a newborn child attached to her chest, Meryl Gizinski tries Nov. 27 to keep her son and nieces and nephews occupied in the cold while they wait for a Christmas parade to begin. The parade, hosted by the Oxford Hills Chamber of Commerce, starts in Norway and ends at Market Square in South Paris. Russ Dillingham/Sun Journal

Amelia Pullen, left, of Minot and Othniel Kroger and Christoph Kroger, both of Peru, help prepare the stage Nov. 29 for “A Nutcracker Christmas” at the Gendron Franco Center in Lewiston. Daryn Slover/Sun Journal

Brayden Bashaw, 16, of Auburn raises funds Dec. 2 for the Make-A-Wish Foundation by selling handmade Christmas ornaments at Gritty McDuff’s Brewing Co. in Auburn. The Edward Little High School sophomore has raised more than $39,000 during his six prior “Ornaments for Hope” for nonprofit organizations. More than 50 local companies donated items for a silent auction to help Bashaw’s cause. He says he picked Make-A-Wish after getting a behind-the-scenes look at the nonprofit organization that fulfills wishes of children who have serious illnesses. “What they do for people is pretty incredible,” Bashaw says. Daryn Slover/Sun Journal

Tree Street Youth Executive Director Julia Sleeper, right, and Hawa Abdi carry new Chromebooks to a ceremony Dec. 1 at Tree Street Youth in Lewiston. Spectrum donated 10 laptop computers and $2,500 to support the organization’s academic program, BRANCHES (Becoming Responsible Adults ‘N Cultivating Higher Education Success.) Founded in 2011, Tree Street Youth is a year-round program that provides 500 youth from prekindergarten through high school with academics, empowerment, college access, leadership, enrichment and mentorship. Daryn Slover/Sun Journal

Phil Brienza, left, fleet operations manager for Lewiston, and Norm Saindon, senior lineperson, are hoisted to the Lewiston City Hall bell tower Nov. 29 to repair and replace lights and a junction box. Cote Crane Corp. of Auburn donated the crane, according to Public Works Director Maryann Brenchick. The crew also installed wire supports to all the lights to help with the snow load, which they believe caused one to fail. A section of Pine Street was closed during the work, which Brenchick said went more quickly than expected. See sunjournal.com to watch a video of the repairs. Russ Dillingham/Sun Journal

Amanda Auger of Auburn examines every tree Dec.1 at Dun Roamin Tree Farm in Lewiston. When Auger was a child, she and her five siblings would go into the woods with their father to locate the most beautiful tree top for their Christmas tree. If there was an open spot in the tree, her father would drill a hole and insert a filler bough. Auger says her family prefers a tree that is taller than the tallest member of the household. She says she found a 6-foot tree for her son, which she will deliver to him in Blue Hill. Andree Kehn/Sun Journal

Trevor Arbour looks out the window Nov. 30 of the Weasel Hut at the snowmaking guns at Lost Valley in Auburn. Owner Scott Shanaman finishes a cup of coffee next to the wood stove before heading out for a ski run. Shanaman says he slept overnight at the ski area so he could be on hand in case he was needed as snowmaking operations begin for the season. The warming shack was a ski patrol shack at the top of a ski run named Weasel. When the shack was moved to the bottom of the ski area, it kept the name. Andree Kehn/Sun Journal

Trevor Arbour looks at the snowmaking nozzles Nov. 30 at Lost Valley in Auburn. Arbour and ski area owner Scott Shanaman fired up the guns on the Bobcat trail to make sure everything was operating. Snowmaking at Lost Valley was paused until last Friday, when temperatures were cold enough to make snow. Bobcat is the next trail covered, according to Shanaman. Andree Kehn/Sun Journal

Jeremy Hiltz, a founding board member at the R.E.S.T. Center in Lewiston, replaces the lid Nov. 28 on a turkey fryer behind the Main Street facility in Lewiston after removing a cooked turkey. The center was hosting a Thanksgiving meal and football watch party. Russ Dillingham/Sun Journal