Santa in the Park will return to the East Petersburg Borough building, 6051 Pine St., East Petersburg, on Saturday, Dec. 10, from 9 a.m. to noon and 1 to 4 p.m. The holiday event will be free to attend and include a variety of family-friendly activities for community residents.

Parents will have an opportunity to take family pictures with Santa and a festive backdrop, which will include a life-size reindeer model. A photographer will be available to take pictures of families for a set fee. Children will also be able to partake in sweet treats from Mrs. Claus's Kitchen, which will offer holiday cookies and hot chocolate provided by Geneva Bakery Cafe for free.

Santa in the Park will include a model train table and dollhouse display. Each car in the train set is sponsored by a local business, which it is then modeled after. The dollhouse display will feature festive decorations along with dolls and miniatures dressed up in holiday attire. At the reindeer food bar, children will have an opportunity to assemble treats for Santa's reindeer, with supplies provided by Wee Care Day School. The event is run primarily by volunteers; students from Hempfield High School's Anchor Club will assist with the Santa photo opportunity and reindeer food station.

This year is the first time that Santa in the Park will be held since before the COVID-19 pandemic, as the borough stopped hosting the event due to safety concerns. The tradition itself began around seven years ago as part of the borough's effort to introduce more family-friendly community events. "Our goal is to provide free events and safe places for families in the community to meet their neighbors and talk with friends," said Kristin Troop, chairperson of the East Petersburg events committee. "The best aspect of all of our events is the opportunities they provide for people to have fun and be a part of."

Santa in the Park is one event in the East Petersburg Day series that the borough organizes each year. The series begins with a car show in May and ends in December, featuring an event each month in between. The events include yard sales, barbecues, movie nights, fireworks, parades, carnival rides and the annual Blues Fest. "Each year we look to expand on events to make them more family friendly. It's a great way to know people in the community, and a lot of kids that participate in these events often return as volunteers," said Troop.

The events committee works closely with the borough to coordinate events, clean parks and manage the equipment needed for the event. Troop noted that the committee has plans to diversify East Petersburg's park attractions and will add more events in the near future.