About 100 people filled the main dining room at Alvamar Country Club on Sunday afternoon for Christmas at Crossgate, a first-time outreach event.

The club at 1800 Crossgate Drive partnered with several local foundations, including Family Promise, Lawrence Interdenominational Nutrition Kitchen, Penn House and the Lawrence Community Shelter, to invite low-income families to the event, which included a brunch buffet and a visit from Santa Claus.

“We thought we’d work with some organizations to get some families here who are maybe having a difficult time financially,” said Bryan Minnis, director of sales at Alvamar. “We have the opportunity to make Christmas a little better for them.”

Near the end of brunch, the dining room quieted as sleigh bells rang. When Santa appeared on the balcony overlooking the room, kids exclaimed with excitement.

Minnis then called up children one at a time to sit on Santa’s lap, and each of them received a wrapped gift. Alvamar members provided funds for the gifts, which included everything from Legos and dolls to gift cards for the older kids.

“We want to do this every year,” Minnis said. “We’ve done other things like clothing drives and food drives, but I think this is something we hope will be a long-lasting tradition.”