CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Dozens of children from across the Kanawha Valley gathered at the Clay Center Thursday afternoon to ring in the new year.
Shouting “Happy Noon Year’s Eve” at 12 p.m., Clay Center staff hosted a celebration for kids who might miss the ball drop at night.
“There are a lot of, especially, toddler aged kids here that won’t probably be able to make it to midnight and will try their hardest to stay up, but it just won’t happen, so we wanted to give them a kind of a way to celebrate the new year and learn what New Year’s is all about,” said marketing coordinator Mackenzie Mize.
The event included confetti poppers, an apple juice toast and a dance party to Katy Perry’s “Firework” on bubble wrap to create their own fireworks.
This was the first New Year’s celebration hosted at the Clay Center. Other events for kids were during Christmas and Halloween.
“I’m sure this will become one of our good family-fun days to celebrate one of the big occasions during the year,” Mize said.