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Light Rain Ushering in the holidays
Rockville Centre villagers gather for annual tree lighting ceremony
Mayor Mary Bossart began counting down from 10 at the annual village Christmas tree lighting on Dec. 9, but before she even got to 5, the lights on the tree suddenly came on. The technician might have beaten her to it, but several hundred residents gathered at Village Green still cheered after the bulbs were lit, welcoming the start of the Christmas season.
Bossart wished the crowd Merry Christmas and thanked those who made the ceremony possible: the village police, fire and auxiliary police departments, the Parks and Recreation Department, the Chamber of Commerce, the Vineyard Church, Busco’s Deli and Catering and the South Side High School chorus and band.
During the 15-minute-long event, the musicians performed Christmas classics under the batons of band director Gene Kaplan and chorus director Karen Faust Baer.
“I’m so proud of these students, and their music teachers are the best,” Dr. Brian Zuar, director of the school district’s Performing Arts Department, told the crowd.
With assistance from six volunteer workers, Busco’s readied 1,000 cups of hot chocolate for the crowd on a blustery night — as it has at every tree lighting for the past 20 years, owner Marc Derkatch said.
The Rev. John McCarthy of St. Agnes Cathedral offered the opening prayer, and volunteers dressed up as reindeer and snowmen. Santa even made an early appearance, waving from atop a passing fire truck. Village Trustees Ed Oppenheimer, David Krasula and Kevin Glynn were on hand to greet and mingle with the crowd.
According to Superintendent of Parks and Recreation Tony Brunetta, the annual tree lighting was held at Village Hall until the late 1980s.
Brunetta also said that the village’s Christmas tree is now around 20 years old, and that it was transplanted from the Recreation Center. “It has definitely grown outwards a lot from last year,” Brunetta said, adding that he estimated it to be 30 to 40 feet tall.
“I never get tired of this event,” he said. “I always find enjoyment and excitement every year I’m here.”
