The holiday season has officially kicked off with the installment of the Ocean Beach Christmas tree, setting up the next big round of events highlighted by the traditional OB Christmas Parade on Saturday, Dec. 6. Practically the entire day will be devoted to seasonal activities to spread smiles, cheer and inspire the general holiday spirit. The Fun Zone for kids opens at 7 a.m. at the OB Pier parking lot at the end of Newport Avenue. The event will include amateur wrestling with an element of comedy, said Ocean Beach Tree Committee chair Claudia Jack. Something new this year for the Fun Zone will be the art of David Linton, who will be selling and signing selections from his renowned artwork. There will be “wonderfully reproduced lithographs of two of my works,” Linton said. “The two pieces are of the Ocean Beach Pier — one depicting a night scene, and the other depicting a day scene.” The OB MainStreet Association will have a booth set up for Linton where for an affordable price neighbors can buy a print and have it signed by the artist. “All of the proceeds will be donated to the families in need in OB,” Linton said. A resident of Ocean Beach for 25 years, Linton has been an active donator to charities in his home community and throughout greater San Diego. More examples of his art can be found at www.somersetli-sencing.com. Also for sale will be T-shirts commemorating this weekend’s main attraction: the 29th annual OB Christmas Parade. Printed and screened by James Gang Graphics, whose founder Pat James was part of the creation of the parade itself nearly three decades ago, the T-shirt will feature the theme of “A Peaceful Ocean Beach Christmas.” These activities and more will be featured in this year’s Fun Zone, including a skate demonstration by Ocean Beach Surf and Skate. The Fun Zone will run until 3 p.m. and break just prior to the parade — the crown jewel of Saturday’s activities. The parade will start at 5:05 p.m. and will run along Newport Avenue from Sunset Cliffs Boulevard then along Abbott Street toward Santa Monica Avenue. “We are hoping to have a lot of fun with the parade this year,” said Ocean Beach Town Council Tree Committee parade chair Kelly Touhill. “Right now, we are pushing 70 entries for floats and hoping that number reaches 75 come Saturday.” The honorary grand marshals of this year’s parade, who will be riding at the front of the procession in special cars, are the James Gang brothers. “[They] got together with a larger group of people and started the OB parade,” said Touhill. The “gang” is made up of brothers Pat, Mike, Greg, and Ron. One of the brothers, Rich, passed away. The James brothers were made grand marshals this year because of the role they played in creating the parade and also as a dedicatory act to the passing of Rich. “We all got together around the holiday season in 1980, and thought the grassroots parade up,” said Pat James. For more information about the parade, call (619) 226-8613, or visit www.obtowncouncil.org. The parade is among the season’s highlights for the Ocean Beach and Point Loma communities, but there are plenty more upcoming events, including: • Sunday, Dec. 7, 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., the OB Town Council Dog Beach Committee hosts the return of “Sandy Claws” at Dog Beach. Professional photographers will be there to take family photos with Santa on the beach. There will also be prizes for the best pet costume. For more information, visit www.obtowncouncil.org. • Through Tuesday, Dec. 16, the Holiday Homes Decoration Contest takes place. Participants are asked to call (619) 316-3403 before Dec. 16 to have homes entered and reviewed for the contest. Winners will be announced Wednesday, Dec. 17.
