Santa strolls along Railroad Street
Mya Aquino, 3, isn't so sure about visiting Santa. (Tracy Scott/Valley Press)
Santa with 1-year-old Jaxx Vonheeder. (Tracy Scott/Valley Press)
Santa with 2-year-old Gracie Braaten. (Tracy Scott/Valley Press)
Santa with Yogi, a Cavalier King Charles Spaniel. (Tracy Scott/Valley Press)
Zane Greenwood, 3, asks Santa for a red car. (Tracy Scott/Valley Press)
Santa's helper elf Kendall Spurr. (Tracy Scott/Valley Press)
Zane Greenwood and brother Blaze Greenwood talk with Santa. (Tracy Scott/Valley Press)
Santa took time out of his busy schedule at the North Pole to bring joy to the children in Plains during his visit earlier this month.
Mountain West Clothing/The Bean Bag, 406 Outlet, Garden Gift and Floral, and Mangy Moose each found a cozy corner for Santa to meet the children and also supplied gifts for him to hand out to the children.
Santa, sometimes called Steve Spurr during the off season, is president of the local Lion’s Club and has volunteered for this coveted position for about the last 10 years. His little elf helper, Kendall Spurr, has been by Santa’s side for the past three years.
Santa’s Stroll started off the Christmas festivities, with businesses in Plains staying open late last Thursday. A scavenger hunt was the highlight of the evening with shoppers being given a card with instructions to visit each of the participating merchants. During each visit, shoppers were told to ask for a sticker to add to their card. The individual that had the most stickers won a large gift box with twelve items, donated by each of the participating businesses.
Some of the items included a chain saw donated by Studs, to a $20 gift certificate from Wild Horse Mercantile. The winner of the scavenger hunt was Nicki Ericksen.
The two that were instrumental in organizing the stroll were Kayla Lilja and Brianna Rivinius. Mountain West owner Erika Lawyer said they saw lots of new faces.
Lawyer said the goal for the stroll was to build community involvement in local businesses. She thought they would need to tweak next year’s stroll to be even longer.
Kim Revier, owner of Garden Gift and Floral, was very excited about Santa’s Stroll.
“The evening stroll was freaking fantastic!” she said.
Jessica Holland, owner of 406 Outlet, in her first year participating in the Santa’s Stroll, saw 10 children visit. Santa was able to hand out coco bombs to the children, supplied by 406 Outlet.
Santa’s last visit was to the Mangy Moose, where they were having a sale on toys.
