“Santa, Santa,” children chanted as St. Nick circled Fountain Square Park on Friday in an old-fashioned firetruck while waving to the gathering crowd during the 2016 Downtown Lights Up event and Bowling Green Gallery Hop. 

Bowling Green City Commissioner Melinda Hill did the countdown for this year’s event. Everyone chanted in unison counting down from 10 and as they reached zero, red lights could be seen strung from the fountain along with illuminated elves, candy canes, toy soldiers and a nativity scene.

Jacque Doyle and her daughter Alea Doyle, who are both enrolled at Western Kentucky University, haven’t had time to see each other in the past few weeks due to school and work. They decided to use the night as a mother and daughter outing. This was their first time attending the event in the four years they’ve been in Bowling Green. 

“We’ve never gotten to see it, so we wanted to come down and experience it,” Jacque Doyle said. “We’re going to do all of it.”

Martha Patterson brought her daughters Olivia and Melodie McMurty, both South Warren High School students, to the event because they love the lights and because singers from the high school performed during the event. 

“It kind of sets off Christmas,” Olivia said. 

“I just think it’s really pretty,” Melodie said. 

Bowling Green resident Ryan Meredith brought his family downtown for the first time to see the lights and he hopes they can make it a tradition.

“Just to start something new with our kids, something that we could set as a tradition that we do during the Christmas season,” Meredith said. 

Meredith’s 7-year-old daughter Zoey was excited to be at the event and when asked what she was most excited about, she simply said “to see the lights”.

Several businesses and organizations participated in Downtown Lights Up and the gallery hop. After viewing the lights, attendees enjoyed going in and out of galleries to see art and to shop for possible Christmas gifts. 

Russellville residents Frank and Mary Jane Kondracki were in town to see “Pearls of the Pacific” at the Capitol Arts Center and they came in town early to see the lights and visit a few shops. It was date night for the couple.

Some of the art on display at Love Art & Antiques Gallery was what owner Bob Love calls “recycled brush strokes” in which he uses cut up tin cans from different drinks to create portraits of celebrities, pictures of animals, cars, famous painters and even characters from Star Wars.

“Twenty something years ago I saw a piece that was made out of aluminum cans and I thought ‘I think I can do that, but I’m going to do it different’ and that’s what I do,” Love said.  

Love also had a coloring book for sale during the the gallery hop that he created of different downtown buildings.

— Follow faith/general assignments reporter Simone C. Payne on Twitter @_SimonePayne or visit bgdailynews.com.