Parks and Recreation Director Donn Hayes believes Petersburg should be at its brightest as the year spins towards its darkest day, looking to launch the first of what he hopes will be an annual celebration of light amidst the bleak and black.

The Light Bright Dash and Bash will begin at 7 p.m. on Sat., Dec. 20, one day before the winter solstice, he said. Registration is an hour earlier.

“We just want it to be fun — we’re having this in the middle of winter,” he said. “We just want people to say, ‘the darkness is not going to affect me; we’re still going to have a great time.�...