By WAYNE STEWART

Work is busily underway to get downtown Palestine ready for a visit from Santa Claus.

Santa’s Magic Workshop is being prepared by local volunteers who are working tirelessly for the arrival of the Christmas season. This year, Santa’s Magic Workshop will be at 201 W. Main St. in downtown Palestine.

Santa will set up shop Thanksgiving weekend and will make Saturday visits to downtown throughout the holiday shopping season.

“Santa’s workshop this year will be twice the size as last year’s,” said Laurnie Durisoe, who is spearheading the effort to get the holiday wonderland ready, along with Marilyn Sheridan, Jean Mollard, Bill Tatum, Mary Alice Largent, the Boy Scouts and Ava Harmon.

The goal of the volunteers is to bring the magic of the Christmas season to life for the children of Palestine, and also to help downtown businesses.

“I just love all the stuff that’s happening around here,” said Mollard, a member of the Main Street Advisory Board. “There’s just so much energy from what they are doing here (at Santa’s Magic Workshop) and from seeing the scaffolding around town and all the work that’s being done.”

For now, much of the effort is being focused on getting ready for Santa Claus and making it a destination experience for the children.

“We really want to personalize their visit with Santa for the kids,” Sheridan said of the motivation that goes into making the workshop. “They are not just visiting Santa, they are getting the whole Santa experience.”

Upon entering the doors visitors will see the animal tea party room and nutcrackers standing guard at the entrance.

Once inside they will be inside a winter wonderland with snowbanks and sleds and wonderland trees.

“It will be a snowman’s playground,” Durisoe said.

From there the children can sit and write their letters to Santa and draw him a picture if they would like.

“Many of the children are thrilled to be able to do that on their own for Santa,” Sheridan said.

Once the letter is written and the pictures are drawn, they don’t have to be dropped in the mail, the children will be able to hand deliver them to Santa themselves.

After traveling through a tunnel of lights and past the doll corner and through Dept. 56® villages visitors make their way to Santa’s room where they get to see the big man up close and personal.

“We want to make this an intimate and warm place,” Durisoe said. “We want the child to come away with the magic of Santa Claus, and when they see this, it’s the real deal and the kids know it is something special.”

The visit with Santa doesn’t mark the end of the experience, though, as they still get to go through Santa’s workshop and see what he has been up to the past year, and maybe, they can talk with some of the animals there before leaving Santa’s Magic Workshop.

“It is a real experience,” Durisoe said. “We have had people tell us they won’t bother going to Tyler or other places this year, because the kids love coming here.”

Volunteers are still needed to help get Santa’s workshop ready. Volunteers are needed tonight at the Link Building, located at Spring and Sycamore streets and also at Santa’s Magic Workshop at 201 W. Main St. in the old Silver Lady location.