Santa Claus came to town for a drive-around preview of the community on December 22, trading his reindeer in for some new wheels.
Last Tuesday night, residents in many areas of the municipality were able to catch a glimpse of Santa as he was driven around in one of the Lac La Biche County Peace Officer vehicles.
His law enforcement escort didn’t mean Santa has been naughty this year, he was with the peace officers to spread some Christmas cheer.
Chris Clark, manager of enforcement services for the County, and other officers volunteered their time to take over as his guides to drive Santa around the region for a three-hour rolling visit that drew families to the route from 5pm to 8 pm.
Instagram video
To see video of the rolling visit, go to the Lac La Biche Instagram page.
Clark says spreading some holiday cheer during what has been a unique and challenging year put some smiles on faces — especially the young ones.
“Due to the COVID restrictions, there’s a lot of kids who didn't get to see Santa this year. So, I think this was an extra way for the kids to get to see Santa, and helped them enjoy the holiday season.”
Precautions in place
The visit was carefully monitored for COVID compliance, with social distancing measures in place and families either standing in driveways or waving from vehicles along the route.
An interactive map was also created for the special visit, allowing families to pinpoint where Santa would be at an exact time, further allowing social distancing and reducing any chance of crowds
Waving from the peace officer patrol truck, Santa’s visit was amplified by holiday music coming from the vehicle sirens and blue and red flashing lights leading the way. As Santa waved to all of the families he passed, he wished them all a Merry Christmas.
“We have a lot of families who have had a difficult Christmas this year, and I think this was a way to bring extra cheer into the community,” said Clark.
