CRANBERRY TWP — Santa's sleigh was in the shop, so he came to the township municipal center by way of fire truck.

Santa and Mrs. Claus pulled up Friday night for the annual Cranberry Light-up Night in the brightly lit truck, waving to the hundreds of children who braved the 25-degree temperatures to greet Kris Kringle.

"He pulled up, and he was coming to see me!" said an excited Kyle Bitzer, 5, of Cranberry.

Santa was the headliner for the annual event, which is sponsored by the township and coordinated by the parks and recreation department.

"This is wonderful. Every town should have this," said Rosella Yoest, of Allison Park, Allegheny County. She was there with her two great-grandchildren, Samantha, 5, and Shawn, 2, who live in Cranberry.

After Santa arrived at 6:30 p.m., he supervised the lighting of the township's tree. The tree will be lit from dusk to dawn this holiday season.

After commending the township's "excellent milk and cookies," Santa quickly went to work researching what children wanted to find under Christmas trees this year. Photographs with Santa were free.

Children packed the municipal center. Jerry Andree, township manager, said about 1,000 people came to the event this year.

Santa received a wide variety of requests. Children asked for everything from video games to dolls to a simple toy truck.

Kyle Bitzer asked for six "Stars Wars" lightsabers, while his sister Shannon, 8, asked for a My Little Pet Shop and their friend Emma Walsh, 5, asked for a purse and a doll.

While some children waited for the coveted spot on Santa's lap, others enjoyed crafts in the municipal building. They made ornaments, decorated cookies and assembled crafts.

Burger King provided free popcorn, cookies, donuts and other goodies for the festivities.

While Santa worked on toy requests, the Venture Club of North Pittsburgh, a women's service organization, went to work on the supply.

The club held a toy drive to benefit Family Resources, an outreach group serving the Greater Pittsburgh area. Unwrapped toys suitable for children from infancy to age 17 were collected.

"The collection went extremely well," said Mary-Alice Olson, club president, while helping to load up two boxes and a few bags brimming with toys.

Attendees also were treated to a dance performance from the Melissa Nemetz School of Dance, which is run through the Cranberry parks and recreation department.