Alachua Celebrates a ‘Snowy’ Tree Lighting

ALACHUA ‒ Christmas is a special holiday, a time of sharing and celebration, bringing families and communities together. Towns often hold special events and celebrations, bringing together large gatherings of the community, with the emphasis often on the children. One of the annual traditions is a Christmas tree lighting ceremony in the town square.

In Alachua, it has been an annual event that involved the entire downtown Main Street with a tree lighting, speeches, tables of treats provided by the City and the merchants, music. But the most important aspect is a visit from Santa, arriving in a white carriage rolling down Main Street with a police motorcycle escort as excited children line the curb and parents take photos with their cell phones.

In the carriage is Santa Claus, Mrs. Claus and two elves. Stopping by the tree, Santa would count down the tree lighting, then ride up to Alan Hitchcock Theater Park, where he took his seat in a special chair for the children to get a chance to tell him their Christmas wish list.

The year 2020 is different, and adjustments were made due to the pandemic. The City of Alachua, determined not to cancel the event and disappoint area children, opted instead to limit activity based on social distancing and safety guidelines. The goals of making it fun for the children and maintaining that magical feel that Christmas means to kids were foremost. Activities were limited to the Skinner Field park where the City’s Christmas tree is located. However, while no activities stretched down Main Street it was still colorfully lit for Christmas.

The entrance to the park was a lit gateway with a welcoming “Merry Christmas” on an arch over the doorway. Inside the park was the giant tree, waiting to be lit up and several tables manned by masked City employees and community groups giving out cookies and treats, all individually wrapped for safety and a photo booth supplied by Walgreens for free family photos.

This year there was no live music at the park or on Main Street as in previous years, but recorded Christmas music filled the air. There were fewer speakers this year with only Alachua Communication Director Mike DaRoza and City Manager Adam Boukari speaking briefly and introducing Alachua City Commissioners.

Before long, as in years past, with sirens wailing and lights flashing, Santa's white carriage came to Skinner Field and kids lined the curb for a chance to see him. As always, he led the countdown for the tree to be illuminated. But this year, due to Covid, there was no long line of excited youngsters waiting to sit on his lap. Before driving away, Santa also told the parents to keep their kids safe and stay informed.

The event created the magical feel of Christmas and a winter wonderland celebration as “snow” fell from the sky. Children thrilled to the surprise snowfall, which originated from a tree branch supporting a machine producing soapsuds that drifted to the ground. Though the event was smaller than previous years, it was a success, especially for providing a community-wide Christmas celebration for the children.

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