Children ring in the new year with a balloon drop at a previous Noon Year’s Eve event at the Ohio Valley Mall. (File Photo)

As 2024 comes to an end, people of all ages are planning how they will bring in the New Year.

For the children of Belmont County, the St. Clairsville Sunrise Rotary is hosting a child-centered New Year’s celebration.

The annual “Noon Year’s Eve Bash” will take place from 9 a.m. to noon Tuesday at the Ohio Valley Mall in St. Clairsville. Admission is cash only and costs $5 per child, which includes games, crafts, slime, music provided by DJ Daner, balloon art and magic shows by Michael Strough. The event will conclude with a balloon drop at noon.

St. Clairsville Sunrise Rotary Club President Ashley Spencer said the organization came up with the event to provide an option for children to be able to celebrate and ring in the new year.

“Traditionally the ball drops at midnight for adults, and several years ago we came up with the idea of doing something at noon. And kids, that’s significant for kids, and kids love balloons,” Spencer said.

She added that once the idea was spawned, the organization reached out to the Ohio Valley Mall to see about potentially partnering together. After forming a partnership, the mall and Sunrise Rotary started looking into getting the netting and other materials needed to make the event go off without a hitch.

She added that the Sunrise Rotary teamed with various community partners for sponsorships to help alleviate the cost of hosting the event. Sponsors for this year’s Noon Years Eve event are EQT, Belmont Savings Bank, Ohio Valley Community Federal Credit Union and Friends of Belmont County Juvenile Court. Spencer added that although it isn’t an official sponsor, Belmont County Tourism Council and the Ohio Valley Mall assisted the club in securing the sponsorships.

In addition to the sponsors, several residents who are involved in various Belmont County organizations will be volunteering their time to help the event run smoothly.

“We have youth volunteers from a couple different sports teams, and the St. Clairsville Interact Club will be doing the face painting, slime, and temporary tattoos,” she said.

“This gives families something to do so kids won’t have to stay up until midnight because New Year’s is traditionally an adult function,” Spencer said. “Rotary as a whole is about service above self. … We as a whole locally and nationally do service projects to give back to our community.”

Spencer added that children under the age of 18 must be accompanied by an adult.