For many folks attending the ‘Sweetwater County Christmas – Light the Night’ event on Wednesday, it kicked off their holiday season for 2015.

The folks at Memorial Hospital of Sweetwater County lit up the hospital for the holidays and the guest of honor was well received by the kids.

The holiday season is in full swing county-wide after the Green River Mayor’s Christmas Tree lighting on Thursday.

On Saturday Downtown turns into a winter wonderland centered around ‘Christmas in the Park’. The event gets going at 1:00 p.m. at Bunning Park and Santa is expected to be on hand at 1:30 p.m.

You can get an early start on the fun Saturday by going to the SCM Catholic Parish Center at 624 Bridger Avenue in Rock Springs starting at 11:00 a.m. for “Nativity – The Gift”. The event offers a free meal of homemade soups in addition to children’s nativity crafts, and Christmas music brought to you by several local churches.

When the sun goes down and the clock hits 5:00 p.m. the Rock Springs Mayor’s Christmas Tree will be lit. This year the event is taking place at a new location, Cannon Park located at the intersection of Elk, A Street and Grant Street.

The Mayor’s Lighting Ceremony is being followed by the ’18th Annual Holiday Lighted Parade’ which gets rolling down Broadway starting at the intersection of C Street at 5:30 p.m.

Before and after the Holiday Parade, stop-by Christmas in the Park held in Bunning Park.

Christmas in the Park is a Giving Festival for local charities. During the day, local musical acts will provide entertainment and hot chocolate will be served.  Santa Claus will be at Christmas in the Park, ride in the parade, and then head back to Christmas in the Park for the rest of the evening.

Hot Chocolate will be available at no cost at 1st Bank (601 N. Front St.), the Rock Springs Historical Museum (201 B St.), and at the Elks Lodge (307 C St.) coffee will also be available at Bunning Park.

You will also have another chance to meet Santa on Sunday by attending ‘Taco Time’s Christmas Carnival’ starting at 11:00 a.m. and going until 2:00 p.m. at the Elk St. location.

The Christmas Carnival will include an opportunity for kids to tell Santa their Christmas wish list, take a free photo with Santa and Mrs. Claus as well as games, prizes, and crafts.

The carnival will be fun for children of all ages and give parents a chance to win a Taco Time gift card while enjoying the afternoon with their children.