Norwich — Corrine Renaldi bought a tiny potted pine tree in 1998 as a table decoration, and as she wondered whether it would survive, she thought of her next door neighbor, David Huntley, who had died of cancer recently, and his 3-year-old son, Dale.

She asked the boy if he wanted to plant the little tree in her yard in honor of his father.

“He watered it every day,” Renaldi said. “That’s how we chose to honor his dad. I never thought it was going to grow. It became enormous. It took over half my yard.”

Last week, Renaldi offered the tree to the city as this year's City Hall Christmas tree.

“I’ve lived in Norwich all my adult life, and I just felt it would be a beautiful thing to donate the tree," Renaldi, who fittingly lives on Pine Street, said Monday.

Norwich Public Utilities crews strung lights on the tree Monday in preparation for the 28th annual Light up City Hall event that kicks off the annual Winter Festival.

"It wasn’t even a Christmas tree,” Renaldi said Monday of the tiny potted plant 21 years earlier.

Renaldi has invited extended family members to attend the Dec. 6 Light up City Hall celebration, and Dale Huntley and his family, who still live next door to Renaldi, also plan to attend.

The 28th annual Light up City Hall event itself is three years into its new tradition. Instead of the Friday after Thanksgiving, the event now is held starting at 4:30 p.m. on the first Friday of December. That not only allows it to join with the monthly First Friday arts night, with several art galleries and performance theaters hosting events, but allows the regular City Hall custodial staff to keep the building and its bathrooms open. Custodians also will be available to clean up afterward.

Live entertainment in City Hall plaza includes choir performances, a dance troupe, puppet show and magic show. Some performers will take their shows on the road, strolling amid the crowd and along city streets.

Several local groups will run games and activities for children, including rock decorating by Global City Norwich, games run by the Norwich Recreation Department and face painting by Norwich Free Academy Project Outreach. The Bully Busters will offer snacks and hot chocolate at the United Congregation Church across the street.

Santa will arrive at about 5:45 p.m. for a half hour of photos with children prior to the countdown to turn on the lights on City Hall and the tree at 6 p.m.

Santa will have bags of special gifts to hand out to children at the event, courtesy of Rows City Knitters.

The knitting and crochet club has been making mittens, hats and scarves throughout the year and dropping off bags stuffed full of the colorful items at the city manager’s office. Club member Issy Aleskiewicz estimated the group made about 100 hats “and probably that many mittens, too.”

The club meets from 10 to 11 a.m. Friday at Otis Library, with about 10 regulars and many more occasional participants. The group receives donations of yarn organized by color and stored in an Otis Library closet. The group donates knitted and crocheted items to the St. Vincent de Paul Place soup kitchen, Madonna Place and nursing homes.

“We just knit and crochet like crazy,” Aleskiewicz said.

c.bessette@theday.com

Norwich Winter Festival schedule

Norwich Winter Festival schedule:

Friday, Dec. 6: Light up City Hall, 4:30 to 6:15 p.m., Norwich City Hall.

Saturday, Dec. 7: WinterFest 5K to benefit Reliance Health, 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. sponsored by Hartford Marathon. Go to www.hartfordmarathon.com for details.

Saturday, Dec. 7: Annual Winter Festival Parade, 1 p.m., downtown Norwich.

Saturday, Dec. 14: SantaCon holiday themed costume pub crawl, 6-9:30 p.m., sponsored by Norwich Events Organization.