They came from Washington, MO, from Maryland Heights, from St. Louis City. For many it is a cherished family tradition, for some it's a chance to try something new. But for everyone, it's a mission: Search the 70 acres of wooded hillsides to find the perfect Christmas tree. The parking lots at Sunbrite Christmas Tree Farm, a few minutes north of Lake Saint Louis on Guthrie Road, were packed Saturday morning as people took advantage of the sunshine and mild temperatures. The farm is open daily until Christmas from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on clear days and from 9 a.m. to 4:40 p.m. on cloudy days.  The…

The City of O'Fallon officially kicked off the holiday season with their 12th annual Tree Lighting ceremony on Wednesday.  Residents filled City Hall from 6-8 p.m. to sing Christmas songs, visit with Santa and join in the countdown to the annual lighting of the tree in the City Hall Rotunda. Click through the image gallery above to see photos of the event. To add your own photos from O'Fallon's Tree Lighting event, click the green button below!  

Mermaids, Supermen and ghosts wandered the halls of Fort Zumwalt high schools, filling their bags with candy on Thursday night.  The Fort Zumwalt School District hosted its annual Safe Halloween event, inviting parents to bring pre-school and elementary school age children out for some family fun in their costumes.  Middle and high school students in the district’s Positive Peer Influence (PPI) program teamed up with teachers to run booths and decorate the high school classrooms for the younger students.  Click through the image gallery above to see photos from the event. To add your own …

With the help of hundreds of volunteers and perfect fall weather, Assumption Parish's Fall Festival drew a record crowd Sunday. Volunteers worked for days to put together the much anticipated sausage and turkey dinner. Diners chose between a turkey or sausage dinner with all of the trimmings. Festival goers enjoyed live music, beer, wine and plenty of games for young and old. The festival featured everything from Texas Hold 'Em to a cake walk. Shoppers could get a jump start on their holiday shopping as vendors and artisans filled the gym, selling their wares.  One O'Fallon resident summed up…

Booths filled with crafts, kettle corn and kids activities lined Civic Park over the weekend for O'Fallon's 27th Annual Fall Festival. Residents enjoyed a street dance on Friday night, and a 5K run, shopping and more music on Saturday.  Click through the gallery above to see photos of the event. If you have your own photos you'd like to share from the event, click upload on this article or send them to jordan.lanham@patch.com. 

O’Fallon Police and residents came together for hot dogs, music, football and o a variety of other activities during National Night Out on Tuesday evening.  The annual event has run nationally for 28-years, bringing neighbors and police together to promote public safety and crime prevention. Click through the photos above to see how one O'Fallon neighborhood participated in the events.  If you have photos you'd like to add from your neighborhood's festivities, click upload to share or send them to jordan.lanham@patch.com. 

From trained dock dogs to puppies just having fun, owners and their dogs where treated to an afternoon of fun at the Alligtor's Creek Aquatic Center on Saturday, Sept. 10. Proceeds from the event go to support the Missouri Alliance for Animal Legislation.

The City of O'Fallon honored the heroes of 9/11 on the 10th anniversary of the attacks with their annual Patriot Day Ceremony  at the 9/11 First Responders Memorial behind City Hall. Residents filled bleachers, clutching American flags and red and white carnations as they listened to guest speaker Dawn Robinson, who survived the attacks on the World Trade Center in New York City. After the ceremony, attendees lined up to place flowers on the 9/11 memorial. Some signed up for the Remembrance Walk, while others headed inside City Hall to donate blood or help sort and box items for U.S. troops …

The River City Rascals teamed up with Ozzie Smith at Thursday's game to help out a former St. Louis Cardinal player in need.  Clayton native Lonnie Maclin, who played in 12 games for the Cardinals in 1993, suffered a stroke in January. The Rascals changed their name to "The Wizards" for last night's game and asked fans to come together to help raise money for the longtime baseball coach who has no medical insurance.  Ozzie Smith, a longtime friend of Maclin, gave the Rascals permission to hand out bobbleheads to the first 1,000 fans on Thursday. He also threw out the first pitch of the game …

Actors gathered at Civic Hall on Saturday for open auditions of O'FallonTheatreWorks' production of A Dickens of A Christmas Carol: A Traveling Travesty in Two Tumultuous Acts.  The Mark Landon Smith comedy, produced by Cultural Arts Coordinator Darren Granaas, will be performed on the stage at the O’Fallon Municipal Centre (City Hall) Dec. 2 –4 and Dec. 9 – 11. See photos from the auditions above! Editor's Note: The Lanhams auditioning for the play are of no relation to O'Fallon Patch Editor Jordan Lanham. 

O'Fallon residents had a chance to view some of the areas finest safety response equipment and chat with law enforcement officers at the O'Fallon Police Department's annual Community-Oriented Public Safety Day (COPS) on Saturday.  O'Fallon's Sgt. Robert Kendall said this was not the first year for the event, which included demonstrations by the K-9 division, resources for family safety and fun activites for the kids. The pleasant weather enticed hundreds of people to the event. 

O'Fallon residents enjoyed snow cones, kettle corn and the tunes of the Rough Groove Blues Band at Tuesday night's O'Fallon Jammin' outdoor concert in Civic Park. 

O'Fallon TheatreWorks presented "The Amazing Adventures of Dan Daredevil" for two weekends at the O'Fallon Municipal Center. Check out our photo gallery of the play! 

Check out our photo gallery of local students participating in the Special Olympics held last weekend at Rockwood Summit High School. 

If you've ever wished you could play Quidditch or attend Hogwarts, then you might be a die-hard Harry Potter fan and in that case will definitely want to stop by the Middendorf-Kredell Library before the end of May. The St. Charles City-County Library District presents the national touring exhibit "Harry Potter's World: Renaissance Science, Magic and Medicine." The display was brought to the library by the National Libraries of Medicine, National Institutes of Health, and will be on display at the Middendorf-Kredell until May 21.  Denise Ulett, the Consumer Health Librarian who wrote the …

The Child Center held its first ever Pinwheels for Prevention campaign this month, culminating with the planting of a pinwheel garden Friday. The Child Center is a child advocacy center, based in Wentzville, that serves 14 counties.  The City of O'Fallon signed a proclamation for the Child Center, declaring April Child Abuse Prevention month. Pinwheels for Prevention focuses on community activities and public policies to ensure that child abuse and neglect is eradicated in our world. The campaign was designed in 2009 by Prevent Child Abuse America. Since then, forty states have participated …

I didn't know what to expect when I entered the doors of Kuk Sool Won this week. I was welcomed by owners Kelly and George Fleites and immediately felt comfortable. The husband and wife team are the primary instructors at the dojang (the Korean term for practice hall) located at 998 N. Main Street in O'Fallon.  It was a warm evening and sweat dripped off students of all ages as they worked to refine their skills. I was very impressed by the discipline and respect of the students. When given instruction they would immediately get into place with all eyes on their instructor. As hard as they …

The annual Donkey Basketball Game in the Fort Zumwalt North High School gym is a fundraiser for the school's Technology Student Association. It is their primary fundraiser for nationals. Teams at this year's event were comprised of Zumwalt North faculty, juniors and seniors. 

Even though the temperature had dropped into the 20's and the ground was covered with snow, over 200 runners and walkers completed the 5K at Renaud Spirit Center on Sunday, March 27, 2011. 

Wednesday, March 23, 2011 was a beautiful spring day in O'Fallon, but high winds brought in cooler air. The temperature dropped quickly as the wind picked up and shorts and flip flops gave way to warmer clothing.