Christmas began Sunday afternoon in Atlanta when Santa Claus showed up for three and a half hours in downtown Atlanta. He parked his metal sleigh in front of Pocket Park on East Main and waited for the kids to show up.
The larger occasion was Holiday Open House, a time when downtown merchants decorate, maybe serve wassail for adults and a bit of candy for the kids. The citizens who attend get a chance to greet the merchants and see what special items might be on sale for the holiday Christmas season.
The time is brief, the occasion is friendly and the purpose is light-hearted. Store-owners really make an effort to decorate and show enthusiasm. Atlanta has a reputation for customer-appreciation efforts and getting together for fun. If one doubts, one should make an effort to attend the Atlanta Christmas Parade Saturday Dec. 3. That event is an extravaganza sometimes taking more than an hour to pass by.
Here are five scenes from Sunday's Holiday Open House.
Cory Yates, right, of Queen City and the Unicorn Ranch Ministries is a knife forging demonstrator who also is a public speaker for helping send kids to camps and adults on missions. Their table is at Cafe Creme Coffee Shop in Atlanta for Holiday Open House Sunday.
Helping to revitalize Atlanta’s historic grade school on Miller St. are these members of the Friends of the Atlanta Grade School organization. From left, Cyndy Chamblee, Jerri Steger and Camille Dawn are selling cookbooks to raise funds for the school remodel. Margret Fitts was helping, too.
Melissa Smith of the well-decorated Ole Rustic Treasures store in downtown has made the effort this season to create a Christmas tree from an abandoned ladder. The idea is to take a ladder, add some shelf boards to form the landscape and then decorate the scene.
Roslyn Lamb Huffman of Atlanta is going to enjoy Christmas this year. She’s making popcorn to sell to parade goers, and she has acquired this well decorated jacket of which she is proud.