Sunny, thank you for that smile upon your face.
Sunny, thank you for that gleam that flows with grace.
Marvin Gaye’s cover of “Sunny” washed over San Julian St while 20 tons of snow began to blanket the Mission’s parking lot with snow. It set the mood – moving Christmas up six months ahead of schedule to July needed a summer anthem to accompany it.
Right outside our gate, you could see a crowd of children waiting eagerly in line – many who have never seen real snow. Aged anywhere from seven to seventeen, each exhibited the same sort of youthful excitement – even the teenagers weren’t too “cool” for this.
The volunteers erected a human tunnel as a pathway into this winter wonderland. Each child walked through the portal with anticipation on their faces and enraptured with the thought of entering into Santa’s realm. Goodbye Skid Row, Hello North Pole.
As each foot made its imprint in the snow, as each hand scooped down to mold together a globes of ice, these kids were immediately transformed into experts of the snowball fight. Each of them began to live out the lives of their childhood heroes – Calvin or Hobbes, Buddy from Elf – and a thousand snowballs took flight.
And at every “Christmas in July” event, we have volunteers set up carnival booths for those needing respite from the ice barrage. Basketball hoop, dunk tank, carnival games – there was always something fun to do while waiting to get back in the action!
Unbeknownst to everyone, we had a very special guest accompany SoCal Santa to the festivities this year. Ice Queen Elsa, from the Disney movie ‘Frozen’, made a special appearance to the delight of all the kids – ages 4 through 40. With a quick nod to the DJ, she began to sing “Let It Go” backed with the chorus of little children entirely mesmerized by her motions.
All of this holiday cheer would never be able to happen without the continuous support from Subway – who have sponsored this event eight years in a row. Though we celebrated the arrival of Christmas in the month of July, it was definitely Sunny for all of the children at the Mission.
