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Camel, cow, donkey replace Rudolph on Santa’s trek to farm
By Sean Barron
CANFIELD
As he made his early arrival in the Mahoning Valley, Santa Claus wasn’t shy about leaving the reindeer behind and choosing a rather unconventional group of animals to accompany him on his long journey.
“We have Chet the reindeer, from the Tim Allen movie [The Santa Claus], a camel, a mini donkey, a mini cow, a goat, rabbits and peacocks,” said Brenda Markley, referring to the animals that were the main attraction for Sunday’s annual Santa’s Winter Barn gathering at the Mill Creek MetroParks Farm on state Route 46.
The three-hour program allowed people of all ages to get acquainted with and enjoy a variety of animals from all over the world. The diversity of the animals was symbolic of the fact that Santa Claus travels and is celebrated worldwide, noted Markley, Mill Creek MetroParks’ agriculture-education manager.
Also part of the festivities were arts and crafts.
It wasn’t long after Santa’s appearance at the family-friendly event that many youngsters climbed into his sleigh and sat on his lap, including Connie Ross’ three children, Leilani, 2; Lacy, 5; and Layton, 9, all of Lowellville.
“I want a computer with a Titan graphics card,” Layton said without hesitation when asked what gifts he hopes to receive.
An iPhone for playing various computerized games was at the top of Lacy’s list.
For Justin Tovtin of Ellsworth, attending the barn gathering also was a generational affair. Accompanying Tovtin were daughters Abby, 5, and 6-year-old Morgan, a Western Reserve Elementary School student, along with the girls’ grandmothers, Patty Tovtin and Suzette Krut.
“I want a husky dog,” said Morgan, who’s also an animal lover with two other dogs at home.
“Anything to do with PAW Patrol is what [Abby] wants,” said Patty, referring to the popular series of six toy rescue dogs based on the Canadian animated TV series that debuted two years ago on Nickelodeon. “She is crazy over PAW Patrol.”
Justin’s holiday plans include seeing relatives from the San Jose, Calif., area that he hasn’t seen in about two years. They will be visiting until soon after New Year’s Day, he continued.
Suzette added that her No. 1 Christmas gift will be to see her husband, Hank, return home from a local health care facility after he had suffered a heart attack last May. Nevertheless, he had open-heart surgery and continues to recover, she said.
Many attendees derived pleasure from interacting with the animals, including the peacocks raised on the farm. Some also were drawn to a Flemish Giant rabbit named Big Rue that Joe Fagnano of Canfield owns.
“She’s very docile and calm. She’s also a 4-H rabbit from when I was in 4-H, so she’s used to crowds,” Fagnano said about the large, brown animal.
Fagnano added that he intends to spend Christmas at his uncle’s home in New Springfield.
While many people spent time having fun with the unusual assortment of animals, others opted for the quieter pastime of coloring pictures or making crafts such as snowmen, elves and tree ornaments. Among them were 4-year-olds Abigail Smith of Youngstown and Brooke Wheeler of Austintown, who came with their mothers, Natalie Smith and Patty Wheeler.
Overseeing that end of things were Delorean Jones and Emmalee Wince, both of whom are agriculture educators for Mill Creek MetroParks.