Santa Claus comes to town during St. Charles’ Holiday Homecoming

Santa had it easy on Saturday.

The weather was nowhere near frightful and kids were oh so delightful and easy going in their requests for Christmas presents during the St. Charles Holiday Homecoming, held in the First Street Plaza.

Requests ranged from Easy Bake Ovens, to video games to a pony. “Surprise me,” one young boy said.

Rachel Davison, 7, of Geneva asked for an Easy Bake Oven. Michael Stewart, 5, also of St. Charles, requested Lego “Star Wars” people. He wrote his note to Santa over lunch earlier in the day and drew a Christmas tree on the back.

Dressed in a sparkling sequined red skirt, Isabella Kaschke, 5, of St. Charles sat on Santa’s lap to ask for a remote-controlled plane. Her three siblings also waited in line, her oldest brother, Kevin, 13, asking for an Xbox with a big smile on his face.

The Kaschke family has made visiting Santa and the events of Holiday Homecoming a family tradition for the past 10 years. They and many others took in a free screening of the movie “Polar Express” at the Arcada Theatre and then took free horse-drawn sleigh rides around town.

Later in the day, Isabella Kaschke would be making an appearance waving on a St. Charles Park District float in the Electric Christmas Parade down Main Street. Her father, Kevin, described the event is as a “nice offering by the city and a nice afternoon for the kids” creating “great memories.”

Santa will be available on Saturdays and Sundays from 1 to 4 p.m. through Dec. 22 in the First Street Plaza.