Christmas Tree

Signs of Christmas season are in the air already -- about 50 feet up in the air. In what has become an annual tradition, off-duty Burbank firefighters spent Monday and Tuesday adding branches to a giant metal Christmas tree near the Media City Center. The tree, which will be lighted at the end of the month, is on the northwest corner of Cypress Avenue and San Fernando Boulevard through New Year's Day. A big star tops the tree and its branches are heavy with multicolored ornaments.

The following reports were taken from police reports. BURBANK VILLAGE 260 E. Magnolia Blvd.: A 20-year-old Los Angeles man told police while talking to a woman Wednesday night in an alley near Gitana restaurant, a man hit him in the face, pushed him to the ground and ran away. NORTHWEST DISTRICT 700 block of North Naomi Street: A 50-year-old Burbank woman was arrested Wednesday on suspicion of hitting her 51-year-old boyfriend on the head with a ceramic Christmas tree.

Santa Claus and his entourage jump-started the holiday season Wednesday evening at Media City Center as part of the mall's first holiday parade. Snowmen, holiday elves, clowns, toy soldiers, gingerbread men, a teddy bear and Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer started at 800 S. San Fernando Blvd. and traveled two blocks south to the IKEA Courtyard at 600 S. San Fernando Blvd. Santa greeted guests and lighted a 50-foot metal Christmas tree assembled earlier this month by off-duty Burbank firefighters.

Santa Claus will usher in the holiday season Wednesday when the Media City Center presents its first Holiday Parade. The parade, which starts at 6 p.m. at 800 S. San Fernando Blvd., will make its way two blocks south to the IKEA Courtyard at 600 S. San Fernando Blvd. The event will feature snowmen, holiday elves, clowns, toy soldiers, gingerbread men, a teddy bear and Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer. Santa will greet guests and light the 50-foot metal Christmas tree assembled last week by off-duty Burbank firefighters.

Joyce Rudolph Folk artist signs works at Trifles Saturday LA CANADA FLINTRIDGE -- Nancy Thomas, a folk art creator whose works have adorned the White House Christmas tree, will sign her work for customers from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday at Trifles folk art store, 1375 Foothill Blvd., La Canada Flintridge. Thomas has delighted collectors with her bigger-than-life vegetables, articulate animals, whimsical angels and people with an attitude. Thomas is a nationally recognized wood carver.

Parents and visitors filled the auditorium at Roosevelt Elementary School on Friday, eagerly awaiting the student presentation of "Pageant of the Holiday Lights." The annual holiday show featured songs and poems about Christmas, Hanukkah and Kwanzaa. Students told the story of how various cultures celebrate the holiday season as Principal Betsy Quinn narrated stories about the history and traditions of the winter holidays. "Living in the Los Angeles area gives us the opportunity to become acquainted with different cultures," Quinn said, as she sat on a rocking chair on the stage.

--Jenna Bordelon BURBANK -- Some big angels are needed to make some little cherubs' dreams come true. The Salvation Army's Angel Tree Adopt-A-Child program puts concerned residents together with needy local kids in an effort to ensure everyone has a happy holiday. Every day until 6 p.m. Dec. 23, caring citizens can pick up a cardboard angel at the Salvation Army Christmas tree, on the third floor of the Media City Center Mall, 201 E. Magnolia Blvd.

BURBANK -- A Christmas tree trimmed with bright lights to memorialize loved ones and those who have died will help illuminate the holiday spirit of giving when it is officially lit at the annual "Light Up a Life" ceremony. Scheduled for 6:30 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 7 at Providence Saint Joseph Medical Center in Burbank, the holiday tradition is meant to raise funds for the Providence Home Hospice, which provides care each year for more than 500 terminally ill patients and their families.

Santa Claus arrived in Burbank this week with a flurry of onlookers that came to see him in his beautiful horse-drawn carriage. Joining Santa on the second annual holiday parade were a host of characters, from Frosty the Snowman to Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, as they danced their way down San Fernando Road and into the Burbank Town Center. Rebecca Quesada, 11, of Sun Valley, who was the special guest and the ambassador representing the Make-A-Wish Foundation, joined Santa and Mrs. Claus as they cruised past the excited crowd.

Jackson Bell Members of the Burbank Historical Society have decided to reveal to the public 75 Christmas tree ornaments and other holiday decorations that date as far back as the turn of the 20th century. They are in a display at the Gordon R. Howard Museum. Society founder Mary Jane Strickland said the antique decorations in the exhibit are at least 92 years old. They were originally owned by Emily Payton Forbes, the first female city clerk in Burbank, and her family when they first moved to the city in 1910.