With fog lingering, Santa picked the wrong night to let Rudolph have off.

Although he didn’t have the red nose for guidance, he did have the red roof lights of a firetruck when he arrived for the annual “Christmas on the Hill” celebration Sunday in Summit Hill.

Several hundred people gathered in Ludlow Park, where carols were sung, candy and hot chocolate were given out and Santa listened to the Christmas wishes of boys and girls.

Christmas on the Hill is sponsored by the Summit Hill Recreation Commission.

Occasional drizzle and dense fog didn’t dampen the spirit of Hillers.

“It’s great that we had such a great turnout,” said Jodi McAndrew, chairman of the Summit Hill Recreation Commission. “We had a great turnout despite the weather.”

The line of children waiting to sit on Santa’s lap was so long that some waited for more than an hour.

Santa arrived riding in a truck of the Diligence Fire Company of Summit Hill.

Leading up to his arrival, Kathleen Crampsie led the St. Joseph’s Catholic Church Children’s Choir in song.

Recreation Commission members, some dressed as elves, handed out the hot chocolate and cookies. They also assisted Santa.

McAndrew said a donation toward Christmas on the Hill was given by Kevin and Kira Steber of Summit Hill.

Summit Hill Mayor Paul McArdle said, “It’s fantastic. I wish we would have had some snow. That would have been an exclamation point.”

“This is small-town America, where we still say ‘Merry Christmas,’” the mayor said.

He heaped praise on the Recreation Commission for sponsoring the event. “They do a fantastic job, year in, year out,” he said.

Also during the event, donations were collected for the Summit Hill food pantry.