One day after work last year I drove to a little town called Duanesburg, about a two hour drive from Binghamton to take my niece Kayleigh to see the Canadian Pacific Holiday Train. It was a bitterly cold and icy evening, but spirits were warmed and lifted high as the Holiday Train pulled into town and brought with it magic that only comes during the Christmas season.

The lights, the music, the larger than life Santa. Kids young and old were enthralled with the Holiday Train and all of its Christmas cheer.  The Holiday Train is a fundraiser for food banks and these brightly decorated trains have covered more than 100,000 miles and raised close to $9.5 million and 3.3 million pounds of food since the program started in 1999.

Each year, the Holiday Trains make stops in communities all over the United States offering free concerts and seasonal festivities from a boxcar which has been turned into a traveling stage. The Holiday Train travels the country for three weeks and in that time period, the musicians on board the trains will play more than 150 free concerts from their boxcar stage. Sheryl Crow and Sarah McLachlan are just two to of the musicians who've performed for the crowds gathering to see the Holiday Train.

The Holiday Train concerts are free, but if you plan on attending, you're encouraged to make a donation to the food bank either through a non-perishable food item or a cash donation. All contributions will stay right here in our local community.

The Holiday Train will roll into Binghamton on Thursday, November 27, 2014. That's right- Thanksgiving Day. You'll be able to see the train at the East Binghamton Yard in Conklin just off Conklin Avenue at 8:15pm. Musical entertainment will be provided by Tracey Brown and the Holiday Train band.

Tracey Brown is a Canadian country music singer. She was nominated for a 1999 Juno Award for Best Country Female Vocalist and her first solo studio album, Woman's Work, was released in 1998 and from that she landed a top 20 single with the title track.

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