Santa Occupies Half Moon Bay

On Christmas Eve day, Occupy Half Moon Bay met on the corner of Highway 92 and Highway 1. The group, ranging from 15 to 30 people, has set up shop at the same intersection of town every Saturday afternoon since Oct. 22.

This time, however, Occupy Half Moon Bay included a special guest appearance by Santa Claus. 

"We received confirmation from the North Pole that Santa will, in fact, be occupying with us this Saturday, Christmas Eve, before he has to take off on his rounds," wrote John Lynch in an e-mail to Half Moon Bay Patch last week. "He has some extra Santa hats and has requested that everybody dress in their finest Elvish apparel."

Lynch was actually the Santa at Occupy Half Moon Bay this Saturday. He is most known for setting up and staffing the voter registration booth on Saturday mornings at the Half Moon Bay Farmer’s Market.  

Donning a Santa suit, Lynch with a group of Coastsiders occupied the corner from noon to 2 p.m.

The public responded to Occupy Half Moon Bay by delivering snacks and juice, and "they also stop by to talk, take photos, video, live stream, and introduce their children,” said Moss Beach resident Sabrina Brennan, who photographs Occupy events around the Bay Area.

“People drive by and wave, give thumbs up, honk in support and smile," she added. "My best estimate is that 75 percent of the people are supportive and only a few give the 1 percent finger.”

Here are some photos by Brennan of Saturday’s Occupy Half Moon Bay.

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