The Salvation Army's ''The Wonder of Christmas'' opened in Dunedin last night - without a Santa.
The event was ''Santa-free'' to relieve the traditional pressures and stresses of Christmas, Salvation Army corps captain Rochelle Moffatt said.
It features an ''avenue of Christmas trees'' decorated by Dunedin businesses to display different ideas of Christmas.
The avenue leads to an area for a hot drink and a mince pie.
People then had the option of dressing up for a photograph in a nativity scene, lighting a candle and hanging the name of a deceased loved-one on the tree of remembrance.
The event, at the corp's Crawford St headquarters, would be open to the public tomorrow and Friday between 7pm and 8.30pm.
Entry was by can donation for the foodbank.
Corps captain Andrew Moffatt said the number of clients needing food had increased 6.6% in the year ending September.
The 1077 clients given food in the year included 628 new clients.
The foodbank was running low on stock, he said.
For the Salvation Army's ''gifts of hope'' campaign, people could choose a specific gift for a family in need, such as a duvet and pyjamas for a child.
