Last week, I witnessed something that will stick with me for quite a while.

First, The Atmore Advance had to send its Dec. 5 edition to the press a day early because of George H.W. Bush’s funeral services. As we deliver our papers by mail, the post office was closed on Wednesday as a result.

Having gotten the newspaper done a day early, we at the paper spent the time getting ready for our winter edition of @MORE.

On Dec. 4, I went to take pictures of the house that we’re featuring in the publication and took care of some administrative planning.

That night, I had the pleasure of going to the annual Santa in the Park event at Heritage Park.

Children were lined up all around Watson Cabin, waiting for a chance to get a snapshot with St. Nicholas.

Fellow photographer Ditto Gorme and I were scurrying about, trying to get the right shot because the Atmore Area Chamber of Commerce did a good job of setting up the scene for the event.

Executive Director Emily Spurlock Wilson, and staff, spent the better part of the day setting up the event, which included stations for cookie toppings, letters to Santa and the Williams Station Day train, which of course, was decked out with a lot of Christmas lights.

Gorme helped me get a good shot of the train going through the tunnel of lights as I call it, for which, I’m grateful. The picture is included in this column. Although it’s in black and white, it does tell the story.

What I’ll remember most is a small interaction with Wilson during the event.

Filled with the spirit of the holiday season, Wilson spoke about how it was an effort putting the event together, especially the tunnel.

The interaction told me how much she loved getting the event in order and ready for area residents.

As I moved on to the next item on my to-do list that night, I smiled as I knew that it was going to be a great holiday season in Atmore.

Did y’all have a good time at the parade Monday?