Kids teemed throughout downtown Hancock on Friday night, making the city’s Christmas Walk the largest ever. Manager Mary Babcock was at City Hall helping with cookie decorating.
By 6:00 she was handing out gift packs of stickers and other holiday themed giveaways, because they had run out of treats.
Across the street, a pine tree stretched several stories into the air emblazoned with white lights.
After arriving into town on the back of a Hancock Fire Department engine truck, it was Santa Claus who brought the scene to life. He stayed long enough to hear from area boys and girls on what they want for Christmas. Meeting the Man in Red can be intimidating. Those who weren’t quite up to telling Santa in person what’s on their gift list had the chance to drop a letter off in a special mailbox that will pass on their wishes to the North Pole.
The Grinch was there too, with a heart three sizes too large.
He teamed up with Santa later in the evening at Quincy Green. Volunteers built a replica of Whoville in front of Hirvonen Hall at the direction of Shelly Lucchesi. She detailed those plans to Keweenaw Report earlier this month.
The construction occurred in the days leading up to the event.
The final product was meant to simulate the Whobilation scene where everyone gathers in the town square to sing and celebrate Christmas.
Babcock says that the evening was made possible only thanks to the help of dozens of volunteers.
Also noticeable was the presence of Hancock City Police, conducting traffic control. With the deliberate killing of at least six people in Waukesha, Wisconsin by a man who intentionally crashed his SUV into a crowd happening only days before, several events in Michigan added to security last week. Thankfully, no problems cropped up from America’s Thanksgiving Parade in Detroit all the way up to the Copper Country.