Greene County Parks & Trails: Santa’s Holiday in the Park

Making Family Traditions and Memories: GCP&T hosts popular 2017 Santa’s Holiday in the Park

Greene County Parks & Trails’ (GCP&T) popular Santa’s Holiday in the Park returns this year with several new festive features and will continue to create lifelong memories for families throughout the region.

The holiday festival will be held from 6 to 9 p.m., Wednesday, Dec. 6, to Saturday, Dec. 9 at James Ranch Park, 177 Fairground Rd., Xenia.

Event attendees will park at the Fairgrounds Recreation Center, 210 Fairground Rd.

By popular demand, live reindeer will return to Greene County and be at the holiday event on Friday evening from 6 to 9 p.m. Specially created lighted candy cane poles will help attendees navigate the grounds.

As always, Mr. and Mrs. Santa Claus will be greeting families within the 1800s brick home at James Ranch Park.
Photographs will be available from betterImages with packages starting at $5 for a 5-by-7 print; families may also take their own photographs or videos.

Within the historic home, letters to Santa may be written and mailed with assistance from the elves from Greene Memorial Hospital/Soin Medical Center. Temporary holiday tattoos will also be offered.

Walking of James Ranch Park will feature thousands of LED lights for an even brighter holiday with more than 50 animated lighted displays placed throughout the park. Event attendees are encouraged to dress appropriately.

Returning this year will be a Holiday Candy Shop where guests can purchase festive candy that will range from 25 cents to $1.

Activity and hospitality stations will be scattered throughout James Ranch Park and feature such holiday favorites as:

• Hot chocolate
• Ornament-making with wooden ‘cookies’ created from ash trees removed from Greene County Parks & Trails sites (one per person)
• Ornaments made with pine cones
• Handmade candles made on-site
• Create your own reindeer food to take home
• Roaming holiday costumed characters
• Holiday wooden cut-outs for photographs
• Kettle coorn

Sponsors of this year’s event include Greene Memorial Hospital/Soin Medical Center and betterImages.

Donations of $1 per person are suggested with all funds raised invested back into the event for future years.

For more information, call Greene County Parks & Trails at 937.562.6440, visit www.gcparkstrails.com or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..