Page 10 THE SAUGUS ADVOCATE – FriDAy, DECEmbEr 12, 2025 The holiday spirit warms up Saugus Center Santa Claus’ visit, cuddly animals to pet, a trackless train and sleigh rides, hot chocolate and hot cider, inflated winter characters made town’s tree lighting event special I t was a cold night last Friday (Dec. 5) at Saugus Center. But the crowd that gathered on the front lawn at Town Hall – estimated at more than 2,000 people – didn’t seem to mind as they welcomed the holiday season while enjoying the town’s Annual Tree Lighting and Festivities. It was fun and games for the first two hours as kids and grownups milled around on the Hamilton Street side of Town Hall, holding and petting cuddly creatures from Enchanted Animal Parties of Groton, Mass. Saugus Town Recreation Department Director Crystal Cakounes and her crew served up hot chocolate. TrueVine Church of Saugus offered visitors hot cider, popcorn and a prayer jar on a table set up near the sidewalk along Central Street. Family members and friends posed for photos in front of the giant inflatable holiday characters set up around Town Hall and in front of the Saugus Public Library. Shortly before 7 p.m., the crowd gathered in front of Town Hall, awaiting Santa’s arrival. At about 7 p.m., Santa got out of his sleigh in front of the Saugus Public Library and walked through the crowd up the walk to the entrance of Town Hall. After climbing the steps, he was greeted by Town Manager Scott C. Crabtree, who handed him a microphone. Santa asked the crowd if they had been good and then gave instructions for the official tree and other trees bearing thousands of festive holiday lights to be turned on – and they will remain on through the first part of January. Once the lights were turned on, town officials escorted Santa into Town Hall and up to the second-floor auditorium, where dozens of kids (and grownups) got in line to have their photos taken with Santa. Several kids went over to a table to get their faces painted in holiday colors. Others posed for photos in front of the animated, giant abominable snowman, who was keeping company with other talking, animated characters. Meanwhile, it was glove and mitten weather for those who spent some time outside during the threeand-a-half-hour event, as temperatures dipped into the mid to low 20s. (Saugus Advocate photos by Mark E. Vogler) Jordyn Deninski, 16, a junior at Saugus High School, left, applied the finishing touches of color to 8-year-old Gwen Thurston’s face. She’s a third grader at the Belmonte STEAM Academy. Jayson Stanasek (left), 8, of Saugus, got his face painted by Tray Riley, 16, a junior at Saugus High School. Gabriel Alvarez, 1, son of Sonia and Nelson Alvarez, of Saugus, enjoyed her first tree lighting event. The TrueVine Church Table: Tammy Garcia, Brandon Allison and Sop Bou offered visitors hot cider, popcorn and a special jar to gather prayers for people in the community. Sunny Almeida, 6, of Saugus, a kindergarten student at the Veterans Early Learning Center in Saugus, with a bunny held by Jeannie Meredith – who helped out at the petting zoo Recreation Department Director Crystal Cakounes and her crew served up hot chocolate from a table in front of Saugus Town Hall. School Committee Chair Tom Whittredge (right) warmed up with a hug from his wife, Elizabeth, as they waited for the arrival of Santa Claus.
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