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San Francisco tree lightings kick off holiday celebrations

Digital Christmas wreath
Wiki Commons user @Oxana59
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Wiki Commons
Digital Christmas wreath

The Nob Hill Association celebrated its 50th consecutive Tree Lighting Ceremony. The festivities took place Monday afternoon at Huntington Park in Nob Hill.

With surprisingly warm weather for late November, families came out in droves to celebrate. About a hundred people gathered to listen to live music from The French American Jazz Quartet, who warmed the crowd with cheery Holiday classics, such as “Jingle Bells” and “White Christmas.”

The audience, mostly families with children, danced, laughed, and swayed together as the music played through the night. San Francisco hotels provided refreshments of hot chocolate, coffee, and cookies. New City Attorney David Chiu gave a speech welcoming the Holiday crowd into a cheerful night.

Just a half- an hour later, the second ceremony took place on Castro Street at Market. Mayor London Breed addressed the crowd, who were treated to a live concert from San Francisco’s Gay Men’s Chorus and the San Francisco Lesbian/Gay Freedom Band. Both events were free. Both events were organized by the City’s Recreation and Parks Department.

It’s not December yet, but don’t tell that to any of those who attended the holiday festivities. ‘Tis the season!

Sunni M. Khalid is a veteran of more than 40 years in journalism, having worked in print, radio, television, and web journalism.