San Jose’s holiday tradition needs the spirit of giving to stay afloat

Dozens of people crowd around hundreds of trees, wearing Santa hats and reindeer antlers, hanging Christmas decorations and laughing. San Jose’s popular “Christmas in the Park” will enchant the Plaza de Cesar Chavez.

This year, the nonprofit that spreads the joy of the holidays is asking people to pull out their wallets to fill a six-figure donation and keep the tradition alive. Christmas in the Park will need approximately $100,000 in future funding after three key sponsors withdrew due to the poor economy. The funding gap won’t impact the more than 44-year-old tradition this year, but it could impact next year’s celebrations. The fun begins with the tree lighting ceremony on November 29th in downtown San Jose.

Debbie Degutis, executive director of Christmas in the Park, said without the money, staff wouldn’t be able to invest in new interactive activities and upgrades to the older displays to keep things fresh. Degutis said the event will be back next year and won’t disappear, but she’s counting on the expected 700,000 attendees to raise the $100,000 so as not to pinch pennies.

She added the best way for the community to show their support is to purchase a ticket to the nonprofit’s other event: the drive-in light show at History Park. The light show is open November 21st through January 1st and features more than a mile of twinkling lights. Tickets cost between $25 and $30 per car, depending on the day.

“Now more than ever, we truly need the community’s support for the city’s largest community event,” Degutis told San Jose Spotlight.

@sanjosespotlight

San Jose’s popular “Christmas in the Park” will have to fill a $100,000 gap to avoid saving pennies for next year’s festivities. Debbie Degutis, executive director of Christmas in the Park, said without the money, staff wouldn’t be able to invest in new interactive activities and upgrades to the older displays to keep things fresh. Degutis said the event will be back next year and won’t disappear, but she’s counting on the expected 700,000 attendees to raise the $100,000 so as not to pinch pennies. She added the best way for the community to show their support is to purchase a ticket to the nonprofit’s other event: the drive-in light show at History Park. The light show is open November 21st through January 1st and features more than a mile of twinkling lights. Tickets cost between $25 and $30 per car, depending on the day. Learn more at SanJoseSpotlight.com. #sanjose #siliconvalley #christmasinthepark #christmas #bayareaevents

♬ Original sound – San Jose Spotlight

Christmas in the Park is free and relies largely on donations, sponsorship and fundraising to recreate the magic of Christmas year after year.

One of those donors is real estate developer Chuck Toeniskoetter. His companies, including real estate and development companies and Silver Creek Self Storage, donated $25,000 this year. He said that as someone who took his four children when they were young, he donated because it was a gem for families.

“They have Santa Claus, the Christmas tree and music – it’s just a nice place to take your kids,” he told San Jose Spotlight.

The festivities extend beyond the festive spirit in the heart of downtown to enliven the area’s small businesses as hundreds of thousands of people stroll the busy streets.

Alex Stettinski, CEO of the San Jose Downtown Business Association, said the economic boost during the holiday season is critical to the vitality of downtown. The region has struggled to recover from the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to high vacancy rates in commercial and office space.

Stettinski said the ice skating rink provided by the downtown association next to the Signia Hotel, along with Christmas in the Park, is transforming the core of the city.

“All of these (events) that we have throughout the year are absolutely critical to continue to attract people and visitors downtown to visit our stores,” he told San Jose Spotlight. “It has an absolutely immediate impact on the vitality of our economy.”

But the heart of the tradition is the joy it brings people each year, from the sugary hot chocolate with lashings of whipped cream to the 600 trees that organizations and families decorate between the holidays.

San Jose resident Erin McCarthy has been attending the event since she was a child. She takes her nieces and nephews with her every year and this year helped decorate a tree for Orchard Middle School, where she teaches. She wants to continue doing this for many years to come.

“Some traditions are just the foundation of society,” she told San Jose Spotlight. “They give people a sense of belonging, of being part of something bigger than themselves.”
Degutis has also been coming since she was a child, when she and her parents made it a tradition to volunteer at the information stand on Christmas Eve. She took photos with Santa for about 20 years as an adult and wants to keep that magic alive.

“Things in life really aren’t free, and when we value something we have to take care of it,” she said. “So I hope people will help take care of Christmas in the Park.”

Contact Annalize Freimarck at (email protected) or follow us @annalize_ellen on X, formerly known as Twitter.