Employees of the City of Battle Ground decorated different rooms of the Battle Ground Community Center. “Santa’s Living Room” was a favorite among decorators and includes a handmade “fireplace,” decorated Christmas tree and a place for Santa to sit and read.
In the “North Pole” room, decorators designed trees and snowmen and created a happy home for the holidays.
Nutcrackers line up in the third and final room of decor.
Former mayor John Idsinga has been working as a friend of Santa Claus for the City of Battle Ground for over a decade. One of his favorite parts about playing Santa is talking with children of all ages about Christmas.
The City of Battle Ground spread socially distant holiday cheer on Friday with a video starring Battle Ground Mayor Adrian Cortez and Santa Claus. The video showcased a Fire District 3 engine and the annual lighting of the City of Battle Ground’s Christmas Tree at Fairgrounds Park outside of the community center on Main Street.
“We wanted to do whatever we could to spread holiday cheer this year,” City of Battle Ground Communications Manager Bonnie Gilberti said. “This year, with the video, we are doing something special for the community.”
Along with the season’s greetings video, city employees spent over two weeks designing, creating and decorating rooms inside the Battle Ground Community Center for its “Window Wonderland” celebration. Decorated with the themes of “North Pole,” “Santa’s Living Room,” and “Nutcracker,” the window decorations spread holiday cheer in a socially distant way as citizens can walk past the community center and enjoy the lit up displays seven days a week. On the eve of Christmas Eve (Dec. 23), Battle Ground residents and those abroad are invited by the city and Santa Claus for an online readalong event with Santa reading classic Christmas books.
The video aired on the city’s Facebook and YouTube pages at 6 p.m. on Friday, Dec. 4, and can be viewed on the Facebook page at facebook.com/CityofBGWA and YouTube at youtube.com/channel/UCncPb-Uoz18wrk91zGhBig
