By: Megan Lux ~Staff Writer~

Guests gathered in Fountain Square over the weekend for Macy’s Downtown Dazzle where they celebrated Christmas festivities and ways to give back during the holiday season.

The evening began with a performance from the Young Professionals Choral Collective (YPCC) and the Cincinnati Boychoir.

These choirs formed at Below Zero Lounge in Over-The-Rhine in Nov. 2011. YPCC works to create connections through choral music. Now the group has more than 500 members, who are volunteer singers that live and work in the Greater Cincinnati area.

Later on in the evening, those who attended Macy’s Downtown Dazzle were greeted by a special guest known for his jolly personality, a red coat, his long white beard and in the coolest whip ever—a sleigh driven by reindeer! Santa Claus rappelled 30 stories down the Huntington Center and onto Macy’s rooftop to kick off a spectacular fireworks display.

This family-friendly show lasted about twenty minutes, after which attendees were invited to Macy’s Fountain Place to warm up with more holiday fun.

In true holiday spirit, attendees were encouraged to sign their names to the Red Cross’s Holiday Mail for Heroes and bring a canned food donation for the FreeStore Foodbank.

The Holiday Mail for Heroes campaign, started by the Red Cross, invites people to sign cards that will be distributed around the world to U.S. Armed Forces, military veterans and their families during the holiday season to spread holiday cheer while showing appreciation for their service.

FreeStore Foodbank, the largest emergency food and services provider in the Tri-State area, also helped spread holiday cheer at Macy’s Downtown Dazzle by collecting canned food items. Freestore Foodbank provides more than 20 million meals annually throughout a 20-county region in Ohio, Kentucky and Indiana and is dedicated to providing food and services, creating stability and furthering selfreliance for people in crisis.

If you were unable to attend Macy’s Downtown Dazzle, there is still plenty of time left to spread holiday cheer and give to others. You can write cards to soldiers and their families and drop them off at the Red Cross or donate food to various food pantries in Cincinnati.