Cathleen Allison/Nevada Appeal Fritsch Elementary students Makayah Colunda, 10, left, and Danielle Bennett, 11, look for friends and family in the crowd at the Silver & Snowflakes Holiday Tree Lighting ceremony at the Capitol on Thursday night.
With 45 minutes to go until the Silver and Snowflake Holiday Tree Lighting ceremony began at the Capitol, Carlos Alvarado already had his spot.
Front row, stage right. Less than a foot from where Gov. Kenny Guinn was scheduled to stand.
Nine-year-old Carlos wanted the spot so he could get good pictures before he went to visit Santa Claus.
"I want to ask him for a PlayStation 3," Carlos said.
The Empire Elementary School student was among the more than 4,500 people who crowded the east side of the Capitol Thursday night to see the grounds receive a little holiday spirit.
"The weather is really the biggest factor," said Maxine Neitz, event coordinator. "Since we have some stars out tonight, we're starting to see a large crowd."
Linda Woons, of Carson City, said she picked a good year for her first tree-lighting ceremony.
"My son is singing tonight, and I've never come out, so I wanted to see what it's all about," Woons said.
It was a first ceremony on a night that marked several final ones, including the last lighting for Guinn.
"We are truly going to miss all of you," Guinn told the crowd. "Thank you for allowing Dema and me to be a part of your lives for a short time."
It was the last for congressman-elect and Carson City native Dean Heller before he leaves for Washington, and the last ceremony for Nancy Mielke, director of the Carson Middle School Red Hot Bell Peppers handbell choir.
Mielke is retiring at the end of this school year.
Santa Claus arrived shortly before the lights were turned on, driven to the ceremony by Beau the Dog in a 1926 Model T Ford.
Following the lighting at the Capitol, hordes of people crossed Carson Street, heading for the city tree lighting at First Presbyterian Church.
Ashleigh Foster, 7, and her brother Logan, 5, were quick to point out their favorite parts of the ceremony.
"I like Santa and the horsies," Ashleigh said.
"And the dog driving," Logan added.
Eight-year-old Noah Jennings said he really liked the ceremony at the Capitol and wanted to tell his unique request to Santa. This year, he wants a pool table for Christmas.
His grandmother, Mary Anne Jennings, had a request of her own.
"I just want a good happy life for my family," Jennings said. "We moved here the day after Christmas in 1964 from Yerington and have been here ever since. I wouldn't want to live anywhere else."
History of the trees
• Both state trees are part of Nevada history. The original state Christmas tree, a 95-foot-tall Colorado blue spruce, was planted in 1876 by George Washington Gale Ferris, the father of the inventor of the Ferris wheel, as part of the first major landscaping project at the Capitol.
• In 1937, the Carson City 20-30 Club requested the State Board of Control "authorize the electric lighting of the fir tree in the Capitol Square for the Christmas season." This continued until the energy crisis of 1972. The tree, with 750 lights, was then re-lit in 1988 by former Gov. Richard Bryan and also in 1989 by Gov. Bob Miller.
• A new tree was planted in 1999 by first lady Dema Guinn, along with one on the mansion grounds, to help replace the 1876 tree, which is nearing the end of its lifespan.
• Contact reporter Jarid Shipley at jshipley@nevadaappeal.com or 881-1217.