The rainy, cold evening did not dampen spirits of throngs of young children at the annual Lakeland Christmas Festival tonight (12.7.18) at IH Clubhouse.
The boys and girls, accompanied by grownups, came for crafts, face painting and special balloons — but the highlight of the evening was the arrival of Santa Claus.
He rode into Lakeland in a Shelby County Sheriff’s Office car with lights flashing and sirens blaring.
Deputy Craig Dent delivered Santa just in time to light the gigantic outdoor Christmas tree and talk to all the good boys and girls inside the Clubhouse.
Link to Google album: https://photos.app.goo.gl/bUDqdbdvTKx7eQoGA
‘Twas the Night before Christmas was the theme of the evening sponsored by Starbuck’s and Papa Murphy’s Pizza. There was a special visiting room with Santa for children to share their Christmas wishes.
Kim Odom, special events coordinator for the City of Lakeland, organized the holiday event.
Volunteers came from the Arlington High School (AHS) National Honor Society and the St. Francis of Assisi (SFA) Youth Group. Representatives from KTnB (Keep Tennessee Beautiful) were on hand to give out Christmas stockings filled with goodies and information about their 5K race.
Those from AHS, all seniors, included Alexa Cunningham, Haley Mynatt and Brennan Hall from Lakeland; Gracelyn Walls, Chloe Biggs, Madison McMahon and Anika Bakshi from Arlington.
Camden Korsmo, an eighth grader at LMPS (Lakeland Middle Preparatory School), came from his Scout Troop 455 at St. Paul United Methodist Church. He is working on his “citizenship in the community” award.
Julia Norton, a Lakeland resident, heads the SFA youth group and brought Isabella Montejano, an LMPS student and Ixayh Gonzalez, a student at Cordova Middle School to volunteer. Claire Hollingsworth, a seventh grader at SFA School, is also a member of the youth group and came with her mother Gretchen Hollingsworth.
… Photos by Jim Willis, Lakeland Currents
