Magical memories made during Niwot's 2024 Enchanted Evening

Whimsical wonder was whistling around town this past Friday during Niwot's annual Enchanted Evening.

As one of Niwot's most cherished traditions, residents came down to Left Hand Corner at the intersection of Second Avenue and Niwot Road to spread cheer and ring in the holiday season. Thanks to the organization and support of several Niwot businesses and the efforts by Linda Klueber and Deb Fowler, who organized this year's event, a large crowd gathered in anticipation of Santa's arrival and the holiday tree lighting.

Enchanted Evening is funded by Niwot's Local Improvement District (LID) and sponsored by the Niwot Business Association (NBA) with tree decorations made possible by Pat Murphy, Julie Breyer, and other volunteers from the Niwot Community Association (NCA) and Niwot Community Connection (NCC). A special shoutout also goes to Chris Teta who helped reach the top of the difficult-to-decorate-tree, and Bob Stadtherr for setting up sound and lighting equipment.

Live music was provided by the Niwot Community Semi-Marching Free Grange Band, which played several holiday classics, with Katie Warren conducting.

The crowd was also treated to a special guest vocalist, Lyla Capparelli, a Silver Creek High School senior who joined the band to sing "Winter Wonderland," "Sleigh Ride," "Santa Baby," and "Mele Kalikimaka." Capparelli will also be playing Regina George in SCHS's Spring Musical, "Mean Girls." During the countdown to the tree lighting and the arrival of Santa and Mrs. Claus, holiday trivia and jokes were provided by emcee Devin Hughes.

Upon the arrival of the Christmas celebrities, children were able to ask all sorts of questions such as, "What is your favorite type of cookie?" and, "What's your favorite color?" (A toss up between red and green was the consensus). Shortly thereafter, Santa and Mrs. C made their way to Niwot Hall to meet children and families more personally for photo ops and to hear what was on kids' wishlists.

One of the many special things about the holidays in Niwot is the draw it has for people who have moved away.

One such Niwot native is Geoffrey Sutyak, who grew up in Niwot and graduated from Niwot High School in 2014. While he now lives in Los Angeles, Sutyak has made it a point to come back to visit Niwot during this time for the past few years.

"It's quintessential Niwot," said Sutyak, "I love the coziness of this small town, I get to see several people I know and grew up with, many of whom are also in the Niwot Community Semi-Marching Free Grange Band, and (this event and time of year) is a great way to show my girlfriend, Gillian (Stucki) how wonderful this place is."

Danielle (Olsen) Rogers was another Niwot native who returned from Tulsa, Oklahoma, to visit family and attend Enchanted Evening with her husband Cody and their three children. Rogers, a 1999 NHS grad who was a standout softball player and later coached competitive softball in Tulsa, was able to connect with a former coach and other old friends in Niwot.

Once the tree was lit, people roamed the shops around town for festive treats and local shopping excursions. Enchanted Evening was not nearly as bitter-cold as last year's event, so with limited snow on the ground, the spirit of the holidays and small-town cheer was at its peak.