![\"\"](\"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/bendigotimes\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/Carols_by_Candlelight-5-200x300.jpg\")
\u201cWe\u2019re over the moon,\u201d he said. \u201cAll the people out there, it\u2019s just wonderful. I didn\u2019t think it was going to happen in the morning, we had the rain, but we worked through it, we didn\u2019t cancel,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re just happy to see families out enjoying themselves prior to Christmas, it\u2019s a great start.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey can go home, enjoy Christmas with their family and have a great new year. Hopefully next year will be different to the last.\u201d<\/p>\n
The night\u2019s entertainment was opened by 14-year-old Scarlett Abbott, with performances also by the City of Greater Bendigo Brass Band, the Bendigo Youth Choir, fan favourite Luke Gallagher, operatic soprano Merlyn Quaife, and baritone Dan Sexton.<\/p>\n
It was Abbott\u2019s second time performing at the carols, singing at the last event in 2019.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s so nice to be back, it\u2019s really great,\u201d she said before taking the stage.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s nerve-wracking but I think I\u2019m used to performing for big crowds now. It\u2019s really lovely to give back to my community, it\u2019s a really enjoyable experience.\u201d<\/p>\n
For Emma and Sean Pontelandolfo, the night marked the first carols for the young family with eight-month-old Amy and two-and-a-half-year-old Nate in attendance.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s exciting, Sean went when he was little, but we haven\u2019t been as a family before,\u201d Mrs Pontelandolfo said.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s really good with the eight-month-old, it\u2019s her first Christmas. Nate\u2019s excited about, it he knows what\u2019s going on this year, it\u2019ll be good.\u201d<\/p>\n
Donations collected on the night will go to UsherKids Australia, for children suffering from Usher syndrome which causes hearing and vision loss.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
CHRISTMAS came early for carollers at Rosalind Park last Sunday. The 50th annual Bendigo Rotary Carols by Candlelight had thousands in the festive spirit, with a range of entertainment and of course, a visit from Santa Claus himself. President of Rotary Club of Bendigo, Tom Dobeli, said they had an eye on the weather radar […]<\/p>\n