Canadian Pacific Holiday Train brings joy to Twin Cities

ST. LOUIS PARK, Minn. (FOX 9) - At the intersection of West Lake Street and Library Lane in St. Louis Park, a little holiday magic played out. 

The Canadian Pacific Holiday Train is a tradition for some. For others, this was their first experience seeing it.

"It's Christmas, and we’ve never seen it," said Tara Bzdok, from Stacy, Minnesota. 

A mother-daughter duo drove an hour from Stacy just to see the colorful holiday lights.

"It was planned for this week. We knew the train was coming close enough where we could see it," said Bzdok.

The train is a show of its own, but once it stops, the crowd is treated to a bit of a concert.

Because it’s so popular, some people arrived early, braving the cold for hours, to get a good spot. 

"So I could get a spot. I’ve never seen it before. This is my first time," said John Cundy.

Seeing the lights on the train is all for a good cause. It is put on by step, which is the St. Louis Park Emergency Program. It helps those with housing insecurity, but Thursday night’s mission was to address food insecurity. So, STEP asked for food donations. By donating food you get a little sprinkle of snow.

"We brought some stuff here as well. It’s where we got our nice little snowflake necklaces," said Tracey Trudeau.

Many people gathered outside in the cold, to see the lights on the train. But according to the organization, this isn’t the coldest it's been for this event.

"We’ve been doing this for years, and even when it was much colder than this, we had people coming out. And people are really excited to brave the elements," said Derek Reise Executive Director of STEP.

And the cold just adds to the experience.