Santa Claus arrived on Antioch Street atop a Station 69 firetruck on Friday, Dec. 2, after stopping momentarily at the Village Green to point at the pine tree—and magically, the lights came on.
The Oom PaPa Band filled the air with joyful holiday music as Santa, his Mrs. and other dignitaries—including Mr. Palisades Evan Epstein, Miss Palisades Casey Longstreet, Honorary Mayor Kevin Nealon Santa Claus and Chamber of Commerce President Adam Glazer—descended to join the annual Ho!Ho!Ho! festivities on Antioch.
Photo: Bart Bartholomew
It was truly a magical night as lines of young and old waited patiently to whisper hopes, dreams and wishes to Santa.
The youngest visitor, only two months old, stayed in a carrier, and the oldest, a 96-year-old woman in a wheelchair, said she was meeting Santa for the first time. She smiled when she realized she was younger than the immortal luminary.
When one young girl approached the man of mythical legend, she looked up into his eyes. Hers were shining, and the glow of wonder, of all that was possible in the world, was alive that night.
Surprisingly, the lists for Santa weren’t as long this year. Although American Girl dolls, Legos, trucks and mermaids were near the top of some lists, many children wanted puppies. Santa looked at them and responded, “A dog is a big responsibility, we’ll have to talk that over with your parents.”
Several children said they had everything they needed and just wanted peace, and people to be happy. On this December night on Antioch, as the community came together, everyone was.
Fancy Feet dancers performed, and there was cookie decorating, face painting, picture coloring, a balloon man, hot chocolate and popcorn.
The gathering was sponsored by the Pacific Palisades Chamber of Commerce, Luxe Homecare and Rodeo Realty. Contributing sponsors included Botham Plumbing, Gelson’s Market, RLB Architecture, Amazing Music, American Legion Post 283, Michael Edlen, Jody Fine Estates, Metro Capital Builders, Movies in the Park, Nasreen Babu-Khan, Trish Bowe/State Farm, Joan Graves, HiLites Hair Studio, Jackie Maduff, Susan Payne and Tillman Family & Fancy Feet.
Santa held court in a sleigh built by Tim Marschall, owner of TMC General Contractors in Pacific Palisades.
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