Christmas in the Park opening drive-thru event to bikes — for one night only

The Silicon Valley Bicycle Coalition posed an interesting question to Christmas in the Park Managing Director Debbie Degutis: Would bikes be allowed at its Drive-Thru Light Show event at History Park?

Her answer — yes and no.

Degutis decided it wouldn’t be prudent to mix bikes and cars, especially with thousands of twinkling lights, decorated buildings and whimsical holiday displays distracting both drivers and cyclists. But it got everyone thinking and the result is that for one night only — Sunday, Nov. 24 — the drive-thru event will be solely a bike-thru event.

Of course, you don’t have to bike all the way to History Park on Senter Road and Phelan Avenue. You can park your vehicle for free in the History Park lot, unload your bike and ride through the display. There’s also plans to have two food trucks and a dessert truck in the parking lot if you want to make a night of it.

Tickets are $10 for an individual and $20 for families (up to two adults and three kids). You can purchase tickets at www.fareharbor.com/christmasinthepark/items — and you can also get tickets there for the Drive Thru Light Show, which starts Nov. 21 and runs through Jan. 1 and is the primary revenue source that keeps the downtown Christmas in the Park display free for visitors.

SCOUTS TAKE FLIGHT: Gary Robinson, founder of Magnum Drywall in San Jose, has a couple of big interests — aviation and country music — and both were celebrated Thursday night when he was honored with the 50th annual Distinguished Citizen award from the Silicon Valley Monterey Bay Council of Scouting America.

The venue for the dinner was the Hiller Aviation Museum in San Carlos. And the entertainment was provided by country music singers Caleb Montgomery and Stephen Cochran. Cochran, in fact, used to play at the Saddle Rack in Fremont, which Robinson co-owned.

The combination must have worked, as emcee Todd Trekell announced the event — attended by about 275 people — raised $548,000 to help fund a scholarship program in Robinson’s name to help scouts who can’t afford to go to Camp Hi-Sierra in the summer.

COLLABORATION IN FAITH: Santa Clara University just completed a collaboration with the Minnesota-based Opus Foundation, which partners with a different Catholic university each year in a process that culminated Thursday in the award of the $1.2 million Opus Prize given to social entrepreneurs from a faith tradition.

Santa Clara was involved at just about every level, with 33 members of the university community serving on an oversight committee — chaired by Molly McDonald, chief of staff for the office of the president, and Matthew Carnes, SCU’s vice president for mission and ministry — that picked “Faith Makes Wonders Work” as this year’s theme. More than a dozen Santa Clara alumni and other community leaders served as Opus Prize jurors, and 16 SCU students, faculty and staff members were ambassadors who joined on site visits to the prize finalists.