Story & photos by Max.
T
he Wylie Grinch is back, and he’s been stirring up trouble all over town! The Grinch first visited Wylie in 2022, entertaining the community with his over-the-top shenanigans at small businesses. He wreaked havoc in local shops, even stealing a Christmas tree (ornaments and all!) from one location. His videos were featured on Discover Wylie, and locals enjoyed keeping up with his daily antics as they headed into the Christmas season. The Wylie Grinch ended the 2022 holiday season by being picked up by the Wylie Police Department when he was found stealing the Christmas tree in Olde City Park. His 2023 journey starts with him being released from the Wylie P.D., inspired to look for a real job and turn his life around. His job search will take him to the Wylie Fire Department, Wylie ISD, and nearly 30 local businesses (compared to just 14 businesses last year). In 2022, the Grinch’s videos had well over 100,000 views on social media – and judging by the launch of this season’s first videos, it looks like he will easily surpass that number in 2023. The Grinch first visited Wylie as a way to bring the community together and showcase all the amazing small businesses we have right here in town. With Christmas upon us, he wants to encourage citizens to shop Wylie first. The Grinch’s videos are a powerful way to increase visibility for local small businesses. The Grinch content gets lots of engagement and
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| December 2023/January 2024
interaction on social media (last year, it had almost 8,000 engagements, another number that is sure to be surpassed this year). Social media interaction and engagement is a big deal for small businesses, and the Grinch is putting businesses front and center. One social media commenter said, “My son absolutely loves watching the Grinch’s shenanigans around town.” And he’s not the only one! Many people commented on the Grinch’s page that they were excited to have him back and can’t wait to see what he does this holiday season. This year, locals will get to see the Grinch make mischief as he tries his hand at putting out a fire, substitute teaching, and even riding a horse in his quest to become a productive Wylie citizen. The Grinch’s popularity has grown. When he was filming his videos for this year, he had to stop for photo ops with local fans in almost every business he visited. He hopes that as the program continues to grow, so will its impact on the community. The Grinch will make one last stop in Wylie before heading back to Whoville, and that will be at the Wylie Christmas Parade on Dec. 3. You can follow the Wylie Grinch on his Facebook page, or keep up with his antics on Discover Wylie. • @WylieGrinch @DiscoverWylie
