“I think without question it was the largest turnout for people that attended but also the largest number of events of any lighting ceremony we’ve had,” Ward said. “It was very well-organized. The businesses that participated and the EAST group just did a wonderful job in getting it ready.”

This year’s Mayor’s Christmas Tree Lighting had a Whoville theme from “How the Grinch Stole Christmas.”

The Grinch and Santa Claus greeted steady lines throughout the afternoon Saturday of youths getting their pictures taken with the holiday standards. Santa and the Grinch then helped Ward turn on the Christmas tree later in the evening. Jocelyn Graham’s third-grade class, which collected the most goods for the mayor’s Good Shepherd food drive challenge, helped Ward with the countdown and lighting of the tree.

A large crowd gathered around the tree, which was on display at its new home: the pocket park at Fourth and Delaware. People congregated near the intersection for various music and dance performances throughout the afternoon.

Though the weather had been overcast and rainy, temperatures got into the low 60s Saturday afternoon.

“It just all came together and the weather gave us a six-hour window and that’s all we needed to make it happen,” Ward said about the rain staying away Saturday afternoon.

Ward said the only real hiccup was that organizers had to use a backup public address system, which wasn’t as loud as the one that the group planned to use.

But he said he thought the event went well overall. He said the festivities offer a chance for the community to come together. Businesses, city staff and the council, police and fire departments all participated, as did the school district. He said that cooperation allows for a true community.

Organizers plan to continue each year with the Grinch theme in an effort to keep building up the decorations and offerings associated with the tree lighting.

“I really enjoy the theme,” Ward said. “I think anytime you have a theme that kids can identify with … they’ve read the book and knew the characters and could interact with all the events. I thought that was really neat.”