(WSB photos)

The West Seattle Junction Christmas tree is officially aglow. This year, instead of gathering the community for a ceremony, caroling, and Night Market, the lighting event was streamed tonight on video, but with familiar guests – Santa Claus, longtime Junction entrepreneur and Christmas decorator Jack Menashe, the Endolyne Children’s Choir, and County Councilmember Joe McDermott. If you missed it, you can watch the 20-minute tree-lighting event here, on YouTube. Afterward, families were invited to switch over to social-media channels to see Santa reading children’s stories. We caught up with him as he settled in to get ready to read “Katy and the Big Snow” by Virginia Lee Burton:

West Seattle Junction Hometown Holidays (with community co-sponsors including WSB) continues tomorrow with a coat drive near the Farmers’ Market entrance – look for the Kiwanis Club of West Seattle tent, 10 am-2 pm, by Easy Street. Bring coats, gloves, and hats to help your neighbors stay warm.