A new group of volunteers working in Florala, Friends of the Lake, plans to stage their first event in time for the holidays.

“What we’re planning is Christmas Around the Lake,” Mayor Terry Holley said. “We’ll ask property owners around the lake to decorate, but we’re asking businesses to decorate, too.”

The idea, he said, is much like the Lake Frank Jackson Trailmasters’ annual Scarecrows in the Park, designed to attract people to the community to see the holiday décor.

“We’re going to get pallets and fence posts,” Holley said. “We’ll have a place people can pick those things up. We will ask that they paint the pallet white to begin with, but after that they can do anything they want.”

Participants will be encouraged to use solar lights on their displays.

“We hope to have between 30 and 50, and stretch them all the way to Manny’s landing,” Holley said.

If the project goes well, he said, Friends of the Lake will add their own scarecrow event next fall.

“We were a little late getting started this year to do scarecrows,” he said.

A core group of about 10 people is working to organize the project, and Holley said others are welcome to join. A second meeting is planned for Mon., Oct. 16.

Lake Frank Jackson is a state park, and people pay admission to see the scarecrow displays.

Florala’s Lake Jackson was once a state park, but was returned to the city in recent years. There is no charge for admission, but the city uses honor boxes and asks visitors to pay a nominal day use fee. The lake’s RV park is home to a community of “snow birds” who regularly return to Florala during the winter.

Holley, who is in his first term as mayor, has set as a goal having a quarterly, lake-centered event.