The City of Foley and the South Baldwin Chamber of Commerce have come up with a unique way to welcome snowbirds, make sure they make the most out of their time in the area and visit as many local businesses as possible while they are here. This idea also helps these businesses and get their name in front of as many potential customers as possible.

  The city and the chamber will host the first ever snowbird welcome reception on Jan. 10 from 9 to 11 a.m at the Foley Civic Center on East Laurel Avenue. This two-part event begins with the reception in the morning with coffee and donuts for those present. At the reception, the snowbirds will be welcomed and given “goodie bags” full of information and coupons for businesses that are a part of the city and/or South Baldwin Chamber, according to LaDonna Hinesley, Marketing Director for the city of Foley.

 “We want to welcome them to town,” she said.

 After the reception, participants will be given a sort of “Foley Bingo card,” according to Hinesley, that will have nine different area businesses on it. The snowbirds are encouraged to visit each business where they will get a stamp. If they visit all of these businesses, they can drop off their card to be entered into a drawing for a free Kindle. All the businesses will be a drop-off spot, so guests can visit in any order they prefer. They will have through the close of business on Jan. 11 to turn their cards in.

 According to Hinesley, the cards are a way to get the visitors moving around in the downtown Foley area and to help them become familiar with different locations. They’re encouraging local businesses to put up “welcome” signs and offer specials to get as many people as possible in the doors.

 “It’s a great opportunity for us to make sure that the snowbirds know that we really welcome them to this community,” she said, adding that they know January and February are the two biggest months for snowbirds. They also know that there are a lot of people already visiting the area as well. “We’re just glad that they’re here,” she said.

 According to Hinesley, Foley is a big draw because of the more than 70 restaurants and the variety and value in the shopping locations. She said there are also a lot of free options including museums, trails, etc.

 “There’s lots to see and do in Foley,” she said. “We know that they enjoy Foley.”

 Event organizers are expecting good attendance at the welcome event and hope the local businesses will take advantage of this great opportunity to put their coupon or information directly in the hands of a lot of visitors,” Hinesley said. Businesses can get their information to the chamber or the city and they will get it in the bags.

 This is the first year for the welcome event in January. Hinesley said they will continue to have their snowbird reception that they’ve had for many years in February, but they wanted to get information to the visitors as soon as possible.

 “It’s just an opportunity to say ‘welcome and we’re glad you’re here’ to the folks that are already here in January.”