Old Ballard lights up with Santa

Holidays in Ballard kicked off in earnest Saturday night with a visit from Santa.

Santa Claus sat inside the Old Ballard bell tower at Marvin Gardens Park, listening to wish lists from dozens of kids.

Photos were provided by Jay Dotson Photography with the proceeds benefiting the Ballard Food Bank. (By the way, Jay has teamed up with Ballard Blossom to take Santa photos. More details on BallardSanta.com.)

Some of the kids were a little shy — at first.

The Seattle Fire Department’s Ladder 18 was also in attendance, which was nearly as big of a hit with the kids as Santa.

There was also popcorn and hot drinks.

Holidays in Ballard organizers adorned the bell tower and several trees in Marvin’s Garden and Bergen Place with holiday lights. We’re told this is the first time in years that the bell tower has been lit up for the holidays

By the way, the missing Holidays in Ballard banner was discovered in an alley behind a house, and it was reinstalled in time for this weekend. (Full disclosure: Jay Dotson Photography is a sponsor of My Ballard.)