Catch a Holiday Movie With the Community

Santa Claus is coming to town. Mark your calendar. He’s arriving at Tuesday night.

In fact, thanks to a holiday event sponsored by MAC and Moorpark Patch, he’ll actually appear twice. Once in person and once on the big screen.

Santa’s first arrival is scheduled for 6 p.m. He will appear in person and be available for photos.

Then, at 7 p.m., a special screening of the film The Polar Express will be shown in the MAC movie theater. Based on the best-selling book by Chris Van Allsburg, the film is a touching story about a boy who is wavering: Does he or doesn’t he believe in Santa? Thanks to a magic train called The Polar Express, he takes a spectacular ride on Christmas Eve and learns that indeed the North Pole and Santa are real. The movie features the voices of Tom Hanks, Leslie Zemeckis, and Nona Gaye.

MAC and Patch also invite families to bring new unwrapped toys to the festivities. The toys will be donated directly to Children’s Hospital Los Angeles.

For general manager Lewis Hermes, the idea for this event was sparked by a request from Patch’s editor Becca Whitnall.

“Becca came to me with the idea,” said Hermes. “We wanted to do a charity event together and thought it would be fantastic to do something where we could gather toys for the hospital.”

“The event gives parents the opportunity to split up, with one staying and watching the movie with the kids while the other, maybe, gets some shopping in,” said Whitnall. “But really, the toy drive to help give kids a slightly happier holiday than they might have had is a big part of it.”

Because both MAC and Patch are fairly involved in the community, doing a project together was a no-brainer, she said, and a free movie night for the people of Moorpark seemed like a great way to bring community members together.

The event is free and everyone is invited. But even if you can’t attend the event, MAC currently has toy bins available for donations. Everyone is invited to drop off toys in the bins at their convenience.

Moorpark Athletic Center is located at 543 W. Los Angeles Ave., in the rear of the Albertson’s Shopping Center. For additional information, email Becca Whitnall at rebecca.whitnall@patch.com or call (805) 206-0857.