Friends of Devoe Park (FODP) hosted the group’s annual tree-lighting event on Saturday, Dec. 11, in Devoe Park, located in the Fordham Manor section of the Bronx.

Attendees at the event were treated to hot chocolate, munchkins, and sugared cookies provided by FODP. The group also handed out Christmas-themed masks, candy canes, and jingle bells to community members. Assemblyman José Rivera (A.D. 78) was also in attendance.

Rachel Miller-Bradshaw, founding member of FODP, said the group wanted to host the event because there wasn’t really any such event marking the holiday season in their local neighborhood.

“That’s just it, just [to] wish the community Happy Holidays, Merry Christmas, Happy New Year, Happy Kwanzaa and Happy Hanukkah,” said Miller-Bradshaw.

Meanwhile, FODP member, Myrna Calderon, explained that the group had wanted a tree planted in the middle of the park which they could then decorate, but said the New York City Department of Parks & Recreation planted it in an out-of-the-way spot, which didn’t align with their plans.

The tree which was eventually used for the lighting was a different one which had been planted a few years ago in the middle of the park, according to Miller-Bradshaw.

“[We’re] just continuing to give the park love and attention and continue to hold events the best way we can because I think this will probably be our last event until spring,” she said. “We’ll probably pick up and have something in the spring, but it’s all about jolliness,” she added.

Aside from the problem encountered with the selection of the holiday tree, the event faced other challenges from the get-go, with the weather forecasting rain in the hours leading up to the tree-lighting ceremony. Luckily for FODP, the rain finally held off until later in the evening, allowing the group to proceed with the gathering.

FODP also encountered an issue with the string lights used on the tree. While it was initially lit, the lights slowly started to go out as the evening unfolded. “When I came, the lights were lit on the top, the middle lights, I could see, were missing,” said Calderon. “I don’t know what happened.”

John Howard, another FODP member, explained that the lights used were solar-powered because the Parks’ department preferred the use of such solar-powered lights. He said the lights worked perfectly when tested the night before, after charging them in the sunlight for three days. He said he believed the lights stopped working on Saturday night because there wasn’t a lot of sunlight that day.

“When I got here at about 4:30, they were not illuminated,” he said. “The sun went down, the lights came on, and then, about half an hour later, they started to go out because there was no sun today. So, there you go – so much for solar,” Howard said.

The group tried to resolve the issue by driving a car up behind the tree and using its headlights to illuminate it. Howard credited Calderon for thinking of getting a speaker for music, and for asking for a generator to power the speaker.

“I took it upon myself to coordinate with the Parks people about getting their generator,” said Howard. “Now, I see this generator and next year, I’m going to ask if we could just borrow it for the lighting event.”

Despite the technical difficulties, FODP and the community attendees appeared to enjoy downing the hot chocolate and singing carols. Howard said the most important thing was for people to have a good time. “We are a very loose group and that has its advantages,” he said. “It enables us to put this together kind of like in the last moment.”

Editor’s Note: A previous version of this story mentioned that the 2020 tree-lighting event had been cancelled amid the pandemic but this was not the case, and it did go ahead. Apologies for this error.