At one festival site, magic of the season

Bonnie DeBondt and her husband, Bill, brought their two youngest grandchildren to Santa's Home for the Holidays festivities on Saturday in Cloquet.

The children, Karsyn DeBondt, 7, and her cousin Ryken Robinson, 3, decorated cookies, climbed onto their grandparents' laps and sat rapt as "Magic Bob" made Christmas tree supplies appear from a cardboard chimney set up in the Wood City Motors showroom.

"We moved to Cloquet to be with the grandchildren," Bonnie said. "This is what makes it so special - to be able to do things like this with them."

The free cookie decorating and magic show was held for a second consecutive year at Wood City Motors, continuing a tradition started by Cloquet Ford Chrysler in 2009. Under relatively new ownership, it's a goal for the dealership to connect with the community, said Brandie Allen, sales manager.

"It's fun for us to learn new things and traditions being in a new community," Allen said. "We like to be involved, and help out as much as we can."

Festivities brought dozens of kids and their families through the dealership, which didn't stop there. Wood City Motors also employed a pair of its Jeep Wagoneers to shuttle folks around throughout the day, and even used one of its pickup trucks to pull the sleigh carrying Santa and Mrs. Claus during the parade down Cloquet Avenue that evening.

"It was a great turnout throughout the day," Allen said of Magic Bob's two performances.

Bob is Robert Halbrook of Cloquet. Before the Covid-19 pandemic, Halbrook and his wife, "the lovely Lynn-Marie," he said, conducted 400 shows a year between Minnesota and Wisconsin.

They've been able to restore about two-thirds of their bookings during the pandemic recovery. Once operators of an employee benefit consulting firm, the couple gave that up 20 years ago to take up magic full-time.

During a cruise and trip to a New Orleans magic shop, Halbrook rekindled his youthful passion for magic. The getaway found him entertaining fellow travelers and left Halbrook to ask Lynn-Marie: "Why don't we just do magic from now on?"

His passion for magic came through in the performance, which kept the children glued to the action of the veteran stage magician. Halbrook was animated and at ease on the children's level, giving fist bumps and drawing constant laughs.

"I like working with kids," he said.

The children were eager to be part of the show, offering themselves as volunteers and casting magic spells right along with the magician.

"Poof," Halbrook would say, and a chorus of "poofs" would reply.

It's been a hard year for some of Halbrook's friends and family. Asked what he wished for this Christmas, Halbrook was thoughtful.

"I'm praying that everyone has a merry Christmas and happy New Year," he said. "Maybe 2023 will be awesome."

Peter, 4, and Joey Hamilton, 6, of Cloquet attended the show with their father, Josh Hamilton.

"Every year we partake in the Christmas stuff the city puts on," Hamilton said.

For Amanda Simon and her five mostly young children, the cookies and magic were fun, but the meaning of the season was even simpler.

"I'm grateful we're all together and have our health," she said before emptying a spoonful of candy sprinkles onto a cookie.