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GROSSE POINTE NEWS, DECEMBER 4, 2008<br />
PHOTO PAGE<br />
Santa and Christmas Carol walk into the crowd to spread holiday cheer.<br />
PHOTOS BY BENEELANDUYT<br />
Four-year-old Jack Bidigare helps Mayor Robert Novitke pull<br />
the switch to light the Christmas trees on the lawn of Grosse<br />
Pointe Woods City Hall.<br />
Robert Carswell, 3, is a little boy with big ambitions.<br />
"I want 100 bulldozers for Christmas," he said.<br />
One hundred? What would you do with them?<br />
"Ride on them."<br />
Robert's father, Gene, and mother, Beth, had heard it all<br />
before.<br />
"One's not good enough," Gene said. "He needs 100."<br />
Gene said odds are good that his son will discover at<br />
least one bulldozer among presents under the family tree<br />
on Christmas morning.<br />
The same likelihood holds for his 4-year-old sister, Ally.<br />
"I want a cupcake maker," she said.<br />
The Carswell family braced a cold rain Sunday evening<br />
to attend the Grosse Pointe Farms Christmas Tree lighting<br />
ceremony at Pier Park.<br />
Festivities quickly moved inside the <strong>community</strong> center.<br />
The Power Chords vocal quartet performed carols. The<br />
Festival Flutes played music of the season. The Merry<br />
Music Maker entertained children. About 75 residents,<br />
mainly children with parents in tow, fidgeted until Santa<br />
Claus arrived.<br />
Farms Mayor James Farquharofficiated lighting t$e tree,<br />
which is really lights strung up a' Hag pole in the parking lot<br />
traffic island.<br />
The cerernony began with a moment of silence honoring<br />
the late Ed Smith, former commodore of the Grosse Pointe<br />
Farms Boat Club.<br />
"Ed contributed a lot of effort to the park and city,"<br />
Farquhar said.<br />
Walking in the rain from the tree lighting to the <strong>community</strong><br />
center, Farquhar offered his own Christmas wish,<br />
"I'd like to see the country rally together and work on all<br />
our issues as one as opposed to fighting each other,"<br />
PHOTO BY RENEE LANDUYT<br />
Farquhar said.<br />
Sam Nehra, Luke Nehra, Jessica Boehmer, Natalie Boehmer, Rochelle Wolfe and Elizabeth Wolfe visit Santa during the Grosse<br />
— By Brad Lindberg<br />
Pointe Farms Christmas tree lighting ceremony at Pier Park.<br />
X. * ....<br />
Above, the Grosse Pointe North High School choir sings<br />
songs of the season during the Grosse Pointe Woods' tree<br />
lighiing ceremony.<br />
Below, holiday wishes from, back row from left, Kristine<br />
Minturn, Ana Meda and Alison Lamanski; front row from<br />
left, Claire Tallerico, Myra Lamphiei; Alex Pullen and<br />
Alexia Ternyak, and Santa Claus. The young women are<br />
members of the Grosse Pointe North High School choir,<br />
Tree of honor<br />
Since 1988, the lighting of the Douglas firin front of Henry Ford Cottage Hospital has served as a beacon of the holiday season at the<br />
top of "The Hill" in Grosse Pointe Farms. The tree was given in honor of Elise Morley Fink by her children and grandchildren in<br />
recognition of her 50th year of service as a hospital trustee and as an honorary board member. The tree was later rededicated and a<br />
plaque place in memory of Elise and her son, Peter, who served on the boards of Cottage Hospital and Henry Ford Health System for<br />
17 years. Multiple generations of the Fink family were on hand as Elise Fink Jones was given the honor of ceremonially Ughting the<br />
tree Monday evening, Dec. 1. The celebration also was attended by local business members of the Grosse Pointe Chamber of<br />
Commerce as well as leadership, staff and friends of Henry Ford Cottage Hospital.
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