White Plains welcomed 2023 with a ball drop for the first time since 2020.

The celebration was a sign of recovery for many people, businesses and bands.

Crowds gathered at Main and Court streets to watch the ball drop and celebrate the new year.

Amal Eideh, of Mahopac, and her long-time best friends said they were pumped for 2023. As high-school students, they overcame many challenges during the pandemic.

"I moved actually to my school this year, so I was like completely new to everything. It was really hard but I eventually got there," Eideh said.

Parents were tested during the pandemic as well.

"Praying that this COVID thing is gone," said Camille Clarks, of Westchester County. She said her family got through the worst of the pandemic. In 2023, she plans to take a trip she's had on hold.

"I want to go to Jamaica. I'm a Jamaican," Clarks said. "To relax on the beaches and have some real food."

Few professionals were tested the way entertainers were the past two years. Melody Rodriguez, of the Just The Melody Band could not wait to perform before the crowd on Main Street.

"The entertainment industry really suffered, I think, the most, because we were the first to close down and we were the last to open up. Then there was the reopening in phases for the entertainment industry, so this is such a breath of fresh air," Rodriguez.