With the 5:30 PM setting sun, students, families, and faculty walked through glowing paper lanterns on the long path to the Bishop’s chapel. As the audience and performers found their seats, they were each handed an unlit candle for the upcoming service.
The annual Christmas chapel started with the dimming of the lights and a brief word from Reverend Nicole Simopolulos-Pigato. The service started with chapel council members reading passages from the Bible, including those of the birth of Christ, and choir members leading hymn sing-alongs in pairs.
Many audience members sang along to the hymn; some prayed to the readings, while others simply sat and listened. After the final hymn, “Joy to the World”, candlebearers from the chapel council went up the rows with a flame. Audience members exited the pews in a sea of glowing candles, cupping their hands around the tiny light as they stepped onto the quad.
Compared to the tranquil, reverent chapel service, the festivities on the quad were much more jubilant. Tents strung together with fairy lights sported tables full of marshmallows, candy canes, hot chocolate dispensers, and pastries ranging from muffins to shortbread cookies. Students, relatives, and faculty members milled about the lawn with treats in their hands. Above the blur of chatter and motion, the Christmas tree’s six-pointed white star waited patiently to be lit.
“This is one of the biggest events of the year, other than Bish Bowl,” Yan Pang, a volunteer at a sweet treats stand, explained, adding,“I’m happy that I can serve the community.”
In front of the Ellen Browning Scripps dining hall, stands for kettle corn and pizza were also filled with bustling lines. Not everybody was hungry, though — at 4:30 p.m. before the event began, choir members had enjoyed Thai food from The Orient Thai Cafe run by Janesita Jinatongthai (‘29)’s parents.
Parents took the time to visit the Giving Tree refugee student adoption as well: a prime example of the generous Christmas spirit flowing through the event.
Soon, the voices of Brady Le (‘29), Alexandra Corso (‘29), Kaia Wood (‘29), and Julian Bartlett (‘29), freshmen members of Bishop’s Chorus, echoed through the speakers. Their rendition of Kelly Clarkson’s “Underneath the Tree” attracted the audience to the Christmas tree’s bleachers.
“I felt so cool,” Kaia recalled. “The crowd was super hyped; it felt like a rave.”
After the freshmen quartet, various choirs joined in on the caroling. The Middle School Choir sang “Christmas Dance”. All choirs performed “Santa Tell Me” with soloists Lisa Pan (’26), Lanna Mai (‘32), and Sehra Suri (‘32) and a small group solo of Brianna Towry (‘30), Valerie Combs (‘30), Clara Stone (‘30), Emily Lai (‘30), and Selena Lee (‘30).
Afterwards, the Teacher Choir sang “Kid on Christmas,” an incredibly popular performance. The choir was composed of math teacher Mr. Santiago Camacho, physics teacher Mr. Ben Heldt, college counselor Mr. Jim Sargent, P.E. coach Meghan Carr, dance teacher Ms. Yvette Luxenberg, math and science teacher Mr. Marco Aquinde, visual arts teacher Ms. Linda Okoth, performing arts coach Lara Korneychuk, performing arts teacher Ms. Jean Moroney, Senior Director of Annual Giving & Family Engagement Ms. Kendall Lucas, Director of Marketing and Communications Ms. Cathy Morrison, math teacher Jessi Chrystal, Senior Director of Alumni Engagement & Community Events Ms. Lori Boyle, Ms. Amy Siberio, english teacher Ms. Amy Allen, and history teacher Dr. Will Peters.
When asked about the event’s ambience, Teacher Choir member Coach Lara Korneychuk replied, “I feel warm, I drank tomato soup from the stall. It’s my favorite event of the year to sing with the faculty choir — it feels like one of the rare times where singing feels like the main event of a social gathering that’s not a choir performance.”
“[Performing at the tree lighting] is a big opportunity,” Kaia added, “I’ve only been performing in the chapel. This is the first big performance, especially for the middle school choir.”
Then, the Bishop’s Singers sang Frank Sinatra’s “Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas”. All choirs led the carols “Jingle Bell Rock” by Bobby Helms, “The Christmas Song” by Nat King Cole, and “Santa Claus is Coming to Town” by J. Fred Coots and Haven Gillespie.
As though summoned by the choir’s carol, History Teacher Mr. Kamal Assaf “came to town” in a red velvet Santa Claus costume, a well-loved role of his.
Mr. Assaf hugged Mr. Kim at the podium to a burst of cheers, and the two began to lead a countdown.
“10, 9, 8…” the crowd chanted. Recording phones swung through the air as they leaned forward in anticipation.
When the count hit zero, Mr. Kim and Mr. Assaf pushed down on a striped lever. Blue lights bloomed from the tree’s ornaments, and the silver star shone down upon the cheering audience.
“All I gotta say is ‘Last Christmas~’,” Madeleine Kratz (‘29) jokingly sang. “[The event] really starts the holiday season off… Mr. Assaf is the best Santa I’ve ever seen.”
Science Teacher Mr. Mike Samale shared similar sentiments. Although he had never been to the lighting after it evolved from “a small thing in the afternoon” when he first started teaching at Bishop’s, he was impressed by the event’s magnitude.
Lastly, Mr. Ron Kim himself explained the importance of the Christmas tree lighting to him; he loves seeing “very festive people [having] such a good time with each other” and “listening to our singers” and “giving them an opportunity to perform in front of everyone.”
“We have so many students to do so many wonderful things and singing is one of them,” Mr. Kim remarked. “This is a wonderful event. Look forward to it every year.”
