By Melanie Lekocevic
Capital Region Independent Media
COEYMANS HOLLOW — This may be Santa Claus’ most hectic time of year, but he’s never too busy for the kids of Coeymans Hollow.
The Big Guy took time out of his holiday schedule to pay a visit to the local children when he stopped by the Coeymans Hollow firehouse for the annual Lunch with Santa event Saturday afternoon.
“This is our annual event, it’s one of our favorite things to do,” said Coeymans Hollow Volunteer Fire Corp. Auxiliary President Mary Ann Dennis. “We do it for the district kids. The crowd gets bigger every year, and that’s great.”
Around 60 kids and their families turned out for the festivities. The fun started with a lunch of chicken nuggets, macaroni and cheese, and punch, and of course Santa’s favorite — Christmas cookies, prepared specially by Auxiliary volunteers.
Then it was time for a special program — a magic show by pirate Kapt. Kraw.
“Kap. Kraw is a magician and he makes balloon animals and from the sound of it, the kids are very happy — they are screaming and laughing. It’s very enjoyable,” CHVFC member Jack Dennis said as the children laughed and shouted joyfully in the background.
The firehouse holds Lunch with Santa every December and it’s always a hit.
“I think this event means a lot for the community — they know we are here for them,” Mary Ann Dennis said.
After the magic show, it was time for the main event — Santa and one of his elves arrived.
Kids visited with The Jolly Ol’ Elf and shared their Christmas wishes, and every child went home with a gift.
For the many volunteers who put the event on every year, it’s a labor of love.
“We like doing things for the community because we are part of the community,” Jack Dennis said. “We want to be involved, and we want people to come see us.”
Several Christmas events have fallen by the wayside over the past few years, largely due to a lack of volunteers, he said. The firehouse is also looking for individuals in the community to lend a helping hand, both for hosting community events and for helping to protect the community.
“We are always looking for volunteers here because it takes a lot to go to fires and to do community events like dinners and breakfasts,” Dennis said. “We need the help.”
At the end of the lunch, Santa went back to his reindeer — who were fed and cared for by the firefighters — and headed back to the North Pole to get back to work.