SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. — The City of South Lake Tahoe invites locals and visitors to join for the annual Festival of Winter Lights this weekend. The festival will be held at 3050 Lake Tahoe Blvd. on December 13 and 14 from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m.

The two-night event includes a holiday market with a variety of local vendors, a Gingerbread House Village showcasing entries to the Gingerbread Competition, and activities like photos with Santa Claus. Also featured: cozy winter carriage rides, a special visit from the South Lake Tahoe Christmas Fire Engine and free hot chocolate provided by the Lake Tahoe Historical Society.

“We first held our version of the event, Holiday History, about 10 years ago,” says Diane Johnson, Museum Chair of the Lake Tahoe Historical Society. They had “all kinds of holiday fun” before partnering with the city four years ago to expand the event. 

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“The very first year we had it after the partnership, it was huge!” says Johnson. In fact, the festival has grown so much that the city warns that parking is limited, asking attendees to “please carpool, and consider taking public transportation, or a free Lake Link shuttle to and from the event.” Lake Link can be found at http://www.tahoelakelink.com.

One thing that hasn’t changed? Scott Peters, the event’s resident Santa Claus. 

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“When I put that red suit on, I am Santa Claus,” says Peters. “And the kids pick up on that. I get them singing songs, I make sure every child and every parent has an opportunity to speak with me.”

Peters has been in attendance at the Festival of Winter Lights as Santa for more than a decade, pouring his heart and soul into being just what kids need.  

“I’ve got stories that would make you laugh and stories that would make you cry,” says Peters. 

That doesn’t mean he doesn’t have a rider.  “Santa can’t have one of those big, fluffy chairs,” says Peters. “Then his knees are up so high he can’t reach the children.” 

The solution? A historical society volunteer actually built Peters his own special chair for the event. 

Peters was a long-time NorCal resident but moved recently. He traveled all the way from New England this year to make the celebration.

“I didn’t quite come from the North Pole,” he says, “but I did come from New Hampshire.”

All are invited to meet the man Johnson calls “the Santa of Santas” this weekend. 

Attendees of the festival are also invited to vote for People’s Choice Award for best Gingerbread House, support the South Tahoe Parks Foundation with a commemorative Glühwein mug (and complimentary hot chocolate!), and generally join in on the holiday cheer.  

For more information, visit http://www.cityofslt.us/FestivalofWinterLights. 

Anna Kristina Moseidjord is a reporter for the Tahoe Daily Tribune and Sierra Sun.