Santa Claus

The rain forecast for Friday?s Hospitality Night gave Laguna Beach merrymakers an unexpected reprieve. The clouds dissipated, and the streets were instead flooded with visitors for the holiday bash, which ran the length of Forest Avenue on Dec. 7 for the 51st year. Folks crowded around city hall to witness the lighting of the historic pepper tree, which has stood in the spot since 1881. It was covered with more than 18,000 lights for Laguna?s own holiday tradition. Special guest Santa Claus arrived with a police and fire escort.

Laguna Community Concert Band will bring back an old favorite, ?The Bells of Christmas,? as part of its free ?Swingin?, Singin? Holiday Concert? at 3 p.m. Sunday. Returning as mistress of ceremonies will be actress and local resident Lona Ingwerson, who will also narrate Henry Wordsworth Longfellow?s ?The Bells of Christmas.? ?I think it?s a show that families would really enjoy,? she said. ?It?s sort of a kickoff for the Christmas season.? Ingwerson said she was thrilled to volunteer her efforts to the organization.

Outgoing Mayor Toni Iseman presented certificates to budding artists Tuesday night, the winners of the 2011 Children's Palette Contest. Fourteen winners were selected from 181 entries. The 2011 winning junior palettes and all previous winners since the program began in 2004 will be exhibited at City Hall through Dec. 30. The rest of the 2011 entries are on display at the Laguna Beach Public Library, courtesy of Laguna Outreach Community Arts, commonly known as LOCA. "I've seen the palettes, and they are amazing," Iseman said.

Children in the Even Start Preschool Program and La Playa Center, and others, were treated to some “beary” special holiday events in December. On Dec. 12, Lisa Fredette and her daughter, Sydney, brought 150 Build-A-Bears to the preschool, where they were distributed to the preschoolers, their siblings and low-income families in the community to help parents get presents for their children this holiday season. By the end of the day all the bears had found good homes.

Forest Avenue will be transformed into a holiday promenade tonight for Laguna Beach?s 51st Annual Hospitality Night. Lights will twinkle on the streets while community members gather on Forest Avenue to celebrate a Laguna-style holiday. The night will see a parade with a special guest all the way from the North Pole ? Santa Claus himself. The historic pepper tree in front of City Hall, 505 Forest Ave., will be lit in a special ceremony at 6 p.m. The tree will shine through the holiday season with 18,000 lights.

"Simply amazing" is the best way I can describe this year's Pageant of the Masters. Which is great considering this is the 75th anniversary ? otherwise known as the diamond jubilee year of the pageant, which began in 1932. Since this was my first year being lucky enough to attend, I can't compare this year's performance to years' past. I can tell you, however, that it was captivating from beginning to end. This year's performance begins with conductor Rich Head waving what could be likened to a magic wand as he leads his orchestra from one musical verse to another.

Laguna Beach will kick off the holiday season Dec. 1 with a night of tradition and fun. It's the 50th annual "Hospitality Night" sponsored by the Chamber of Commerce. Downtown will come alive with music and revelry, and businesses will stay open until 9:30 p.m. The evening's festivities will start at 5 p.m. with a concert by the Thurston Middle School Band in front of City Hall, 505 Forest Avenue. Santa Claus will arrive in style — this year riding on a new Mini Cooper that will be raffled off. Then Santa, with the help of city officials, will light up the historic pepper tree in front of City Hall at 6 p.m. Santa will then parade down Forest Ave. to his special house at the corner of Forest Avenue and Glenneyre Street, where he will spend the evening visiting with children — after picking the winner of the Mini Cooper.

Winter Fantasy, a cousin to Sawdust, offers an alternative to the mall stores, featuring unusual gifts made by local and far-flung artists.Malls and chain stores can't compete with Laguna's Winter Fantasy when it comes to holiday shopping in an unusual setting for one-of-a-kind gifts. The 15th annual holiday arts and crafts festival will open Saturday, showcasing works by 170 exhibitors that shoppers won't see anywhere else. Through trial and error, the volunteer show organizers settled on a four-weekend event that includes live entertainment, artist demonstrations, arts classes, three cafes and special treats for children.

School board mulls superintendent search firms The Laguna Beach Unified School District Board of Trustees narrowed down its list of possible search firms to four at its Dec. 20 special meeting. The firms will be interviewed in early January as the board seeks to hire a firm to administer the district's search for a new superintendent. Superintendent Theresa Daem plans to step down by the end of the current school year. The district received seven proposals from firms around the country.

Santa Claus is coming to town for Hospitality Night, but he won't be lighting the pepper tree in front of City Hall. The city moved Santa's traditional drop-off spot to the corner of Forest Avenue and Glenneyre Street in order to manage the traffic expected for Friday night's football game, a league semifinal between Laguna Beach and Corona del Mar high schools. Temporary seating has been added at the high school's athletic field to accommodate the expected crowd. "We are very excited to have both of these wonderful events in Laguna Beach on Friday, and the city is taking every measure to provide more parking and better circulation," said Community Services Director Susan Cannan.