Music and festivity filled Soldotna Creek Park on Saturday evening for the Soldotna Chamber of Commerce’s annual Christmas in the Park celebration.

Across the wide space of the park, families piled into a horse-drawn carriage, children eagerly waited their opportunity to meet Santa Claus — or threw snowballs — and people warmed up either by fires or with a cup of hot cocoa.

This year’s event started a little earlier than in previous year’s — leaving more time for people to experience everything, Joe Spady, chamber communications and events manager, said Saturday.

Putting on an event like Christmas in the Park takes a lot of effort, Spady said, both from the chamber and the broader community — Kenai Peninsula Borough Mayor Peter Micciche read a list of 27 sponsors for the event before lighting the Christmas tree.

Even as the night came to its end, with fireworks exploding over the Kenai River, hundreds filled the park — a line still winding its way to Santa’s lap and a crowd gathered toward the park stage.

“How many small towns get together to wish each other a merry Christmas, as a community?” Micciche asked in the minutes before fireworks lit up the river’s surface. “We do it here in Soldotna.”

It’s because the event can bring people together that it’s successful, Spady said. He described a meeting with general managers of Kaladi Brothers and Starbucks — at the same table hashing out the logistical details of providing hundreds of cups of cocoa. He said the event is a personal favorite.

“It’s a magical, feel-good night,” Spady said.

For more information, find “Soldotna Chamber of Commerce” on Facebook.

Reach reporter Jake Dye at jacob.dye@peninsulaclarion.com.

Children play at the base of the Christmas tree during Christmas in the Park at Soldotna Creek Park in Soldotna, Alaska, on Saturday, Dec. 7, 2024. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)

Fireworks explode over the Kenai River at the end of Christmas in the Park at Soldotna Creek Park in Soldotna, Alaska, on Saturday, Dec. 7, 2024. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)

Harley St. Clair, 5 weeks old, meets Santa Claus for the first time at Christmas in the Park at Soldotna Creek Park in Soldotna, Alaska, on Saturday, Dec. 7, 2024. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)