Children enjoy Christmas party at Bushy Run

About 30 excited children gathered at Bushy Run Battlefield Museum & Visitor Center this month to celebrate the holiday season.

The historical park hosted a children’s Christmas party Dec. 4 complete with crafts, snowball games and a visit from Santa Claus. The party at the 225-acre battlefield site along Route 993 in Penn Township was open to children ages 5 to 12.

“We’re part of the community and we like to do things for the community,” said Jean Saunders, Bushy Run volunteer and education committee member. “But also, we like to bring people into this area and to the battlefield. … We love having little kids learn about history. Even though we don’t really teach the history when we’re having a party, they’re exposed to it.”

The party was hosted in the Bushy Run visitor center, which also houses the park’s museum related to the August 1763 battle involving British soldiers and colonial rangers and a group of Native Americans. This is the third year the park has hosted the event.

Children made Fruit Loop ornaments, created tongue-depressor picture frames shaped like Christmas trees, and even made their own cup-and-ball games with festive bells replacing the balls. They also sang carols, ate Christmas-themed snacks and played holiday games.

Partygoer Maison Cooley said he successfully caught the bell in his cup seven times in a row. His grandmother Toni Miller, who took him to the party, said her grandson enjoyed the party and Bushy Run’s museum. This was the first time that Cooley attended a Christmas event at the park.

“It was great” said Miller, of Penn Township.

Siblings Jackson and Paityn Thomas attended the party together.

“My favorite part of Christmas is spending time with family,” Paityn Thomas said. The siblings live in North Huntingdon.