Seven. That’s the number of Santas we saw last year. We saw Santa at a mall, Santa at a park, even Santa in a hotel. All of them were great. ObieQ took the obligatory pictures and we moved on. But there was ONE experience that was different. An experience that felt more like the gathering of family and community and less about asking for presents. It was Soul Santa (with Mrs. Claus!) during the Hyde Park Holly-Day event. If you haven’t waited for Santa while jamming to “This Christmas,” you are missing out.
I have written about why Black Santa is important. You can read more about that here in this past post. If you were one of the many families that joined us last year, I can’t wait to see you again. I am excited to be part of the upcoming Hyde Park Holly-Day event on Saturday December 7th. Soul Santa & Mrs. Claus will be at The Promontory for free pictures from 10 a.m. – 1 p.m., at 5311 S. Park Avenue West. Once your photo is taken, it can be texted or emailed to you, or shared on your social media. With the email link, you can even order a free print to be sent to your home.
The event is sponsored by the University of Chicago in partnership with Downtown Hyde Park, the Hyde Park Chamber of Commerce, and the South East Chicago Commission. There’s a full day of fun planned starting with holiday movies, an ice carving demo and sculpture stroll, Buddy the Elf, holiday crafts and activities, costumed characters at local businesses, dance performances, and even live reindeer. Check out the schedule here.
This is your chance to meet Soul Santa & Mrs. Claus!
- This year we are moving to The Promontory.
- We are adding DJ B-Rocking to keep you grooving and two stepping the entire time.
- Holiday Crafts & Activities on site
- Performances by Hyde Park School of Dance, Ayodele Drum & Dance Youth Company and Kenwood School of Ballet.
This event is Free w/RSVP and sponsored by The University of Chicago/UChicago Civic Engagement in partnership with Downtown Hyde Park Chicago, SECC Chicago and the Hyde Park Chamber of Commerce.
Photos with Soul Santa is from 10a-1p but plan to spend the entire afternoon in Hyde Park because the celebration doesn’t end until 4pm.
This is my favorite event of the season and I can’t wait to see you there. RSVP here for the fun free events. I will be waiting on you!
