Lucas Muir, left, and Jaxon Muir had the chance to share their Christmas lists with Santa while their mother, Andrea Muir, listened in. InkFreeNews photos by Keith Knepp.

By Keith Knepp
InkFreeNews

A helpful directional sign guided guests across the Oakwood Resort’s grounds.

SYRACUSE — Chautauqua-Wawasee’s third annual “Old Fashioned Christmas” celebration kicked off the holiday season Saturday evening with a fun-filled variety of events at Oakwood Resort in Syracuse.

Early-arriving guests were treated to music by the “Chain Gang” barbershop quartet and the Winona Brass Quartet. At 6:15 p.m., Dr. Rex Parent kicked off the evening’s festivities with the lighting of the Christmas tree in front of Oakwood Resort’s main entrance.

Once the grounds were officially opened, the hundreds of guests had the opportunity to take photos with many of the costumed characters who could be found strolling the grounds. Other free activities included a visit with Santa, a reading of “‘Twas the Night Before Christmas” by one of his elves, a live nativity scene and a reading of the Biblical Christmas story in the historic Oakwood Chapel.

Along the path, visitors were treated to a free holiday photo booth, bags of food to feed Santa’s reindeer on Christmas eve, cups of hot chocolate and sugar cookies and s’mores provided by the Boy Scouts.

The highlight for many families were the free horse-drawn wagon rides and an opportunity to visit with a live reindeer.