This December, downtown New Glarus will be decorated with a life-size Advent Calendar. Every evening, from December 1st through December 24th, one window will be unveiled. Many locations will offer treats, beverages, music and specials the night of their unveiling.

Adventsfensters are common in the smaller towns and villages in Switzerland, and New Glarus resident Jacqueline Judd wants them to become a yearly feature during the holidays in New Glarus.

“It is in a lot of family’s tradition to gather and go to see the opening of the windows,” Judd says. “As an example, when I was a...