Join Us for this Magical Holiday Tradition!
San Juan College’s Gift to the Community
A glimmering array of bags will shine from rooftops, along sidewalks, in courtyards and select campus parking lots as San Juan College celebrates its 46th year of the luminarias display. The community can choose to drive or walk through the display. Walkers can begin enjoying the luminarias at 5 p.m., while the driving route will open at 6 p.m. Others will want to take advantage of the Park n’ Ride Red Apple Luminaria Trolley available from 6 to 8 p.m. To access the FREE service, park at the Piedra Vista High School parking lot between 6 and 8 p.m. for a no-stress ride through the luminaria display aboard a festive Red Apple Trolley.
Driving, walking, parking instructions
Only two entrances will be open during the event. Walkers may park in one of the following lots: Quality Center for Business (Lot #O), the School of Energy Parking lot, and the north Child and Family Development Center (Lot #P), which are accessible by traveling south on College Boulevard from Pinon Hills Boulevard. Drivers will enter the College from Butler Avenue traveling east on Sunrise Parkway. They will then follow the marked route through the campus and exit at College Boulevard, where traffic will be required to turn south to 30th Street. Please note that the Pinon Hills Boulevard entrance to the College will be closed during the Luminaria display. As a courtesy, all drivers are asked to turn their headlights off as they drive through the display. Reducing light pollution during the event will ensure everyone has the most optimal luminaria experience possible.
Enjoy food and sounds of the season.
Mary’s Kitchen will be open from 5 to 9 p.m., with hot food available for purchase until 7 p.m., while retail snacks, beverages and hot chocolate will be available for purchase until 9 p.m. The sounds of the season will ring campus wide as San Juan College’s listener supported radio station, KSJE 90.9 FM broadcasts your favorite Christmas carols. The KSJE Facebook page will also provide live video coverage of the event several times throughout the evening
Luminaria Stargaze
Weather permitting, the San Juan College Planetarium will host its annual Luminaria Stargaze from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m., in the inner courtyard near the Connie Gotsch Theatre. A telescope will be set up to view the night sky.
Volunteers are the key
The Office of Student Engagement and Campus Life coordinates this event with help from the San Juan College Physical Plant, students, staff and community volunteers who set up and light the candles. The week prior, hundreds of area school children and high school students help fill paper bags with sand and candles, which are then set out by College students, staff and volunteers. San Juan College invites community members and groups to contribute to this annual tradition on Saturday, December 7, by assisting with setting up bags at 9 a.m., and lighting the candles at 3 p.m.
The community is welcome to take the luminarias to recycle for their own use after 2 a.m. on Sunday, December 3. San Juan College will begin the clean-up and dispose of any remaining luminarias beginning at 9 a.m. on Sunday, December 8.
For further information on this event or to volunteer, contact the San Juan College Office of Student Engagement and Campus Life at 505-566-3588.