News Photo by Julie Goldberg William Kroll and Briley Dingham decorate Christmas cookies Saturday at the Besser Museum for Northeast Michigan’s Big Holiday CrafterNoon event.

ALPENA — The holidays kicked off Saturday at the Besser Museum for Northeast Michigan.

The museum held its Big Holiday CrafterNoon event where families were able to meet Santa Claus, decorate cookies, make different crafts, and listen to Christmas music.

“We wanted it to be a family fun day,” said Amanda Kucharek, education coordinator for the museum. “People could come and have a nice day with the family.”

Kucharek said the event gets everyone into the Christmas and festive spirit.

Kids were able to make Victorian fans or a Swedish dala horse to hang on Christmas trees. Kucharek said kids could also make a mini basketball court or a football field from different wood crafts, which came from Home Depot.

“There are a lot of Christmas traditions as part of those crafts,” she said.

The planetarium hosted two film showings: “Star of Bethlehem” and “Santa’s Secret Star.” Kucharek said those were great shows for kids.

She said kids were able to see Santa when they entered the museum. Carole Cadarette played Christmas music on the piano for those who attended the event.

There are other Christmas displays open at the museum, Kucharek said. She said one that’s open every year, the Trees of Nations, gives people an opportunity to learn about cultural traditions from around the world.

“Our Avenue of Shops is here all the time, and decked out this time of year,” Kucharek said.

Also at the museum through the holiday season are trees that different nonprofits groups around Alpena decorated.

“We always have really beautiful displays, so always a good reason to come in, always learn something new, and always something that you’ll miss the first time and you’ll catch the next time,” Kucharek said.

The museum is also hosting An Evening of Lights on Dec. 14 from 6 to 8 p.m. People can see the museum lit with Christmas lights at night.

Julie Goldberg can be reached at 989-358-5688 or jgoldberg@thealpenanews.com. Follow her on Twitter @jkgoldberg12.