Fantasy of Lights in Los Gatos already out of its nightly tickets.
Annual holiday tradition was forced to trim hours because of Santa Clara County’s curfew
Fantasy of Lights, the popular drivethru holiday event at Vasona Lake County Park, doesn’t open until Friday but it’s already sold out for its entire run through Dec. 30. This is the first time in memory that it’s happened, and it’s not necessarily for the obvious reason.
A holiday activity that families can do without leaving their cars is naturally in demand, so that’s certainly part of it. But Santa Clara County Parks Department spokeswoman Tamara Clark said another factor is the county’s new 10 p.m. curfew.
“Due to the curfew we are having to close the gates early to not only get the public through the event, but also an attempt to get people home before the curfew time,” she said.
That includes making sure park staff members have time to close and secure the park after the last vehicles leave the display of animated light sculptures. The event itself isn’t considered essential un
der county guidelines, though you’d have a hard time winning that argument at our house.
Meanwhile, Christmas in the Park, which also is a drive-thru event this year, was swarmed on its opening night Friday. Cars were lined up for blocks along Senter Road to get into History Park, and some people left in frustration. (Our family bought tickets for a 7 p.m. entrance, arrived around 6:40 and made it in the park about 90 minutes later.) Christmas in the Park Executive Director Jason Minsky said traffic control was improved on Saturday and Sunday, but you can still expect a wait on weekends, so plan to arrive early.
Tickets are nearly sold out for Friday, Saturday and Sunday shows, and for the week leading up to Christmas. But there are plenty of spots available for Monday through Thursday over the next couple of weeks. They’re available for $20 per vehicle ($10 if you enter between 4 and 5 p.m.) atchristmasinthepark.com.
SECONDS FOR THANKSGIVING >> I received some nice feedback from readers for my Thanksgiving weekend column on people and groups I’m grateful for this year, but Mike Beamer wrote in with the name of someone I didn’t have on my list: Valley Medical Center Foundation Executive Director Chris Wilder. And he’s certainly right given how much the VMC Foundation has done during the COVID-19 pandemic, coordinating the distribution of PPE and other equipment for health care workers and hospitals and raising thousands of dollars in monetary donations and supplies. Beamer points out that he’s a little biased, as he’s the former chief financial officer for VMC Foundation, but I’ll say that just makes him well informed.
Another person among many who merits mention is Darlene Tenes of CasaQ, who organized the caravans to bring donated supplies to farmworkers in the Salinas Valley, starting in the early weeks of the pandemic. Her efforts brought her plenty of news attention, even scoring a feature in this month’s AARP magazine, which has been arriving in mailboxes. By the way, Tenes isn’t taking the holidays off: She’s in the midst of a project to decorate and fill 5,000 Christmas stockings for farmworkers’ children.
You can get all the information, including stocking-stuffer ideas and pickup and drop- off locations, at farmworkercaravan.com.
JOINING FORCES >> The Addison-Penzak Jewish Community Center and the Jewish Federation of Silicon Valley — both based in Los Gatos — came to the end of a yearlong journey as their members officially voted Monday night to merge as a new organization, Jewish Silicon Valley. The combined group will bring the separate entities’ programs, services, fundraising and philanthropy under one roof — with fitness center, cultural programs and services for youth and seniors continuing under the JCC name.
The Jewish Federation of Silicon Valley was founded in 1930 as the Jewish Federation of Greater San Jose, and the Addison-Penzak JCC actually got its start as programs of the federation in the 1960s and ’ 70s before getting big enough to split off on its own in 1974.
“I will keep the vision of ensuring a vibrant Jewish community in Silicon Valley at the forefront of my work every day,” said Lael Gray, who is CEO of the Addison-Penzak JCC and interim CEO of the Jewish Federation