PHOTOS: Annual tradition lights up Okotoks Christmas Eve

First responders in Okotoks set out on Christmas Eve to light the way for the man in red.

Each year on Dec. 24 for 20 years, Santa Claus has made a pit stop in Okotoks, giving his reindeer a chance to rest while he is escorted by a parade of firefighters, RCMP, Municipal Enforcement, EMS, and for the past five years, the Canadian Armed Forces' King's Own Calgary Regiment.

“Twenty years ago, Santa lost his way in town, so he stopped by the fire department and asked for a guided tour of Okotoks," explained firefighter Ryan Kaiser in a Dec. 17 interview. "Our former chief (Kaiser's father, Paul) and off-duty RCMP auxiliary were more than happy to escort him and the tradition was started.”

In attendance for this year's event were three of the original participants, now-retired fire chief Paul Kaiser, retired Calgary Police officer Chris Large (who at the time was an RCMP auxiliary member), and retired firefighter Stephen Bailey.

Okotoks' current fire chief Trevor Brice gave a presentation to the special guests before this year's Christmas Eve Parade, thanking them their part in starting the tradition, along with a gift to commorate the occasion.

Bailey recalled the original set up to cart Santa around town.

"We had a little boombox in the back of the truck with a bench across it," Bailey said, adding in later years it got more elaborate. "We had a guy build a sleigh and he added a windshield."

The former fire chief recalled only one complaint.

"It was from a church, because we stopped right next to them during their service," Paul Kaiser said.

On shift as an RCMP auxiliary member for the original event, Large recalled how it was very much improvised.

"It was just one police car, me, with a radio and this (the antique firetruck) and no idea where we were going," Large said. "We just tried to hit as many streets as we could. I would be two or three minutes ahead of them with lights and sirens so everybody would come out and take a look."

He added a thanks to the current participants keeping the parade going.

"I wanted to thank everybody for keeping this tradition alive, it means an awful lot to me," Large said, speaking to the assembled responders Christmas Eve. "My kids grew up with this, they would be in the police car with me, and now my grandkids are waiting for you to go by."