Canoe Place Holiday Tree Lighting Illuminates Hampton Bays

Let the holidays begin. Several hundred area residents ho-ho-ho’ed along with Santa and sang holiday songs with carolers for the Canoe Place Tree Lighting in Hampton Bays on Friday night, December 1.

“We’re here to support local business in this amazing place,” said Tali Waxman. Her husband Adam and young daughter Olivia were enjoying a toasted marshmallow, part of the ‘Fireside Fridays’ celebration. “It’s nice to come back to a place they reinvented,” she added.

General manager Mario Arakelian said it’s all about giving back. “It’s great to bring the community together for our second year now,” he proclaimed. “We like extending warm hospitality and making people feel like this is a familiar home,” he said.

The festivities included the requisite St. Nick who posed for photos with many of the kids and listened patiently to present lists. Dickens-esque carolers dressed in old English waistcoats, hats and long dresses led the large crowd in traditional favorites. Arakelian enlisted a few of the kids to hit the button and after a countdown, the towering, ribboned spruce lit up the west lawn.

Lots of ‘oohs’ and ‘aahs’ and a few more songs and it was over.

If you missed it, the tree is easily visible each night from Old Montauk Highway and sure to become an annual beacon in the Hampton Bays neighborhood. The Fireside Fridays continue throughout the winter, but Santa’s probably too busy to revisit.