Scott Swanson
Sweet Home’s display of lighted Christmas Cards got wings last year, but it’s exploding this holiday season.
“We went from 40 to 80 cards,” said Ben Dahlenburg, one of the driving forces behind the display, in which the 4-by-8-foot hand-painted holiday-related scenes are posted around town. “I have 40 people out there this year, painting them up. I could have done 50 if I’d had 10 more cards. It’s really kind of taken off.”
The cards are one of many attractions in store for Sweet Home residents this holiday season, which kicks off in earnest next week. Others include the Christmas Parade; the Singing Christmas Tree; six bazaars; various holiday events at the Chamber of Commerce and East Linn Museum; the Trees for Scholarships Auction; a local shopping extravaganza and more.
The card display was begun with 13 initial cards in 2012 by then-Economic Development Director Brian Hoffman, Alice Grovom of the Sweet Home Beautification Committee, and others. Organizers added 27 last year and this year’s cards are expected to total 80.
Dahlenburg said the displays will be placed on church lawns and other public spots around town “so people will have to travel around to see them.”
He said First Baptist Church is planning to set up a radio broadcast so visitors to its display can tune in and hear a story.
A complementary map of the locations will be available at the chamber and at The New Era, 1313 Main St. The cards will be put on display Dec. 5, the day of the Christmas Parade, and will be lit that night.
This year lighting for the cards will have electric eyes that will turn the spotlights on at dusk. The Sweet Home Beautification Committee is providing the lighting and extension cords, and those who host the card displays will pay for the electricity, Dahlenburg said. Each card has been sponsored by an individual or organization who have contributed $50 for the plywood card, the paint and light. Some artists have sponsored their own, Dahlenburg said.
In some cases the sponsors have requested specific themes, such as a postman delivering Christmas mail or a firefighter bearing Christmas gifts.
“All of these different places are kind of using their Christmas association,” Dahlenberg said. “It makes it kind of personal and special.”
Megan and Sarah McCartin were working on a card last week in the foyer at Community Chapel, where their uncle Mark is a pastor. He recruited them to do a Nativity scene set in Sweet Home, they said.
“People know we’re familiar with art,” said Megan, 22, who along with her sister, were perennial winners in art contests during their high school years. It’s still a serious hobby for them.
“Even if it’s not a particular career path, it’s a life path,” Megan said, as she painted snow-covered trees on a hillside overlooking Foster Lake.
Sarah, 21, filled in details on the people in the painting. She specializes in portraits, while Megan is more drawn to landscape painting, said their father, Dean McCartin, who was watching the painting process from the sidelines.
Dahlenburg said the feedback from the community on the card displays has been “nothing but positive” and organizers have had no trouble finding people willing to wield a paintbrush.
“It’s amazing,” he said. “I’ll go into places and ask if they know anybody. They’ll say, ‘I might be able to do one.’”
Arlene Paschen, another organizer, noted that some artists have painted multiple cards.
“It has been a popular thing,” she said. “The artists are all local artists. It’s bringing people to Sweet Home. Home Sweet Home for Christmas.”
Following is a rundown on other holiday celebrations:
Tree Lighting and Caroling
Sweet Home’s Christmas holiday celebration will kick off in earnest at 5:30 p.m. Friday, Dec. 5, with the “Let Our Lights Shine” tree lighting at the Chamber of Commerce, 1575 Main St.
Refreshments will be served at the chamber, followed by community caroling along the way to East Linn Museum. Carolers will walk from the chamber along Main Street to the museum, where more refreshments await.
Sweet Home High School band teacher Pat Johnson and his Jazz Band are scheduled to participate.
Grand Christmas Parade
The Christmas Parade, themed “Winter Wonderland,” will start at 11 a.m. on Saturday, Dec. 6, at 22nd Avenue and will run along Long Street to 10th Avenue. Entry applications for participants are available at the Chamber of Commerce.
Applications to enter the parade are available at the Chamber of Commerce, 1575 Main St.
All entries should be decorated in line with the “Winter Wonderland” theme. Organizers encourage the use of music to help create a festive Christmas mood, and all entries should plan for a fun parade with bright colors and excitement. Only one Santa Claus is permitted in the parade to prevent confusion among children. He will appear on his own float.
Volunteers are still needed to assist with the lineup.
Dignitaries should notify the Chamber of Commerce office at (541) 367-6186 as soon as possible so placards can be made and arrangements can be made for vehicles.
For information or to volunteer, contact Debbie Walvatne at (541) 570-2218.
Wreath-Making
A swag and wreath-making class will be offered at 10 a.m. Saturday, Dec. 6, at the Sweet Home Ranger District, 4431 Highway 20, by district rangers.
Participants can learn to assemble holiday swags and wreaths from locally collected forest products, such as boughs, cones, and berries. Boughs and berries are provided, and some wreath rings will be available, but participants are encouraged to bring their own, along with clippers for trimming boughs.
Cost is $10 per person, $5 for seniors.
To participate, contact Alice Smith at [email protected] or Tiffany Young at [email protected].
Christmas at East Linn Musuem
Following the parade, East Linn Museum will offer free tours of its decorated parlor and photo opportunities with Santa and Mrs. Claus at 746 Long St. from noon to 4 p.m. Participants are asked to bring their own cameras for the photos.
“The museum will be totally decorated inside,” Paschen said. “We aren’t going to furnish a photographer but people should feel free to take pictures at the museum.”
Tours will also be offered from 1 to 4 p.m. Friday, Dec. 5, Dec. 12 and Dec. 19, and from 1 to 4 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 13 and Dec. 20.
A Live Nativity will perform outside the museum from 5 to 7 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 13 and Dec. 20. Gifts of canned food for SHEM will be collected, and the museum will serve hot cocoa, cider and cookies. Local musician Steve Burtch is scheduled to perform during the Nativity.
Also on those evenings, free carriage rides, sponsored by the Skyline Restaurant, will be offered during the Nativity performances.
Paschen said more carolers are needed for the Dec. 5 kickoff, and organizers are seeking back-up actors for the Live Nativity.
“We need people to fill in if one of the actors gets sick,” she said. “That was a problem we had last year.”
To volunteer or participate, contact the chamber at (541) 367-6186.
Bazaars
Holiday bazaars will be held at:
n Friends of the Library Bookstore, on the corner of 12th Avenue and Long Street, from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. Friday, Dec. 5 and Saturday, Dec. 6;
n Sweet Home Genealogical Society, 1223 Kalmia St., from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Friday, Dec. 5, and Saturday, Dec. 6;
n Hope Center, 12th Avenue and Kalmia Street, from 4 to 8 p.m. Friday, Dec. 5, and 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 6;
n Sweet Home Evangelical Women, 1347 Long St., from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday, Dec. 5, and 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 6;
n AmVets, 580 Main St., from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 6; and
n Elite Fitness, 933 Main St., from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 6.
Singing Christmas Tree
The Singing Christmas Tree will perform at 7:30 p.m. Friday, Dec. 5, and Saturday, Dec. 6, at the Sweet Home High School Auditorium. A matinee performance will be held at 3 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 7.
Admission is free, but donations are gladly accepted. The annual concert will be held in the Sweet Home High School auditorium.
The theme is “The Wonder of Christmas.” The selections are based on the first Christmas.
Sharing Trees
Sharing Trees are available through the Sweet Home Fire and Ambulance District, 1099 Long St., for children 12 and under and through the Sweet Home Police Department, 1950 Main St., for teens through age 17. Also, Sweet Home Emergency Ministries is coordinating the Christmas Food Basket program.
SHPD’s Teen Blue Santa Christmas tree is accepting applications through Dec. 1.
Applications can be picked up at the police dispatch window at the address above or can be mailed or emailed to donors.
The parent or guardian of recipients will be notified and wrapped presents will be delivered to the child’s home the week of Christmas by police officers and Santa Blue in a police vehicle, or can be picked up at the police department.
Anyone who needs help, and meets the following criteria, is encouraged to apply:
n Children must live in and be actively enrolled in the Sweet Home School District;
n Children must live with parent/guardian/person completing the application;
n Only one request form per address will be accepted;
n The primary focus of this program is children ages 12 – 17 (but younger children’s names may be submitted)
n The Teen Blue program will coordinate names with Sweet Home Fire and Ambulance District’s Sharing Tree, so there will not be doubling up.
Participants who want to donate are invited to take a STAR off the tree in the Police Department lobby, which will be set up starting Nov. 25. Gifts need to be purchased, wrapped and returned no later than Dec. 12 to ensure prompt delivery to the teen.
For more information, contact Gina Riley at (541) 367-5181 or at [email protected].
Contributors can pick up tags and forms now at the station. The forms are due back Nov. 28. Folks can get tags from the tree up until the day before they are due which is Dec. 11. Gift pick up is 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Dec. 16 and Dec. 17 at the station only.
Individuals or families who wish to have a child’s name placed on SHFAD’s Christmas Sharing Tree need to fill out a request form which can be picked up at the Sweet Home Fire and Ambulance District office at 1099 Long St., beginning Monday, Oct. 20. Cash donations are also accepted. All cash donations will be used to purchase toys and needed clothing for local children. The deadline for returning request forms is Friday, Nov. 28.
The names of children and families needing assistance will be placed on the “Sharing Tree” at the Fire Department. Another tree will be placed at the high school Christmas Bazaar following the Christmas Parade on Dec. 6, for that day only. Anyone wanting to donate to the “Sharing Tree” toy program is asked to stop by the Fire Department, choose a name tag from the tree and then buy that child a gift, wrap it and return it to the “Sharing Tree” at the Fire Department by Dec. 11.
Names that are left on the sharing tree will be taken by local fire district personnel who will purchase gifts to fill these requests. This year as in the past, those requesting gifts will be asked to pick them up at the Fire Department starting Dec. 16 and 17.
Another option is to adopt a family – purchase gifts for an entire family. For more information, contact the fire district office at (541) 367-5882.
Food Baskets
Forms for food baskets must be picked up at SHEM, where personnel will prepare food baskets for delivery in time for Christmas dinner. Persons wishing to make cash donations for food baskets may do so at the SHEM Food Bank at 1115 Long St. Donations of non-perishable food and clothing are also welcome. For more information, call (541) 367-6504.
Downtown Shopping Extravaganza
The third annual Rocking Around the Christmas Tree shopping extravaganza will be held from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 6, in downtown Sweet Home. Some businesses may not be open during that entire time, so participants are encouraged to check on store hours.
The purpose of the event is to encourage the community to shop in Sweet Home first. Participating businesses will have their name listed in an advertisement in the Dec. 3 edition of The New Era and will have window displays advertising their participation.
Shoppers will have their “passport” stamped at each participating location as they shop and then a chance to win money for their completed “passport” at a party at the VFW, 580 Main St., on Saturday night. A total of more than $500 in cash and prizes will be given away. All ages may participate, though there will be a limit of $50 in cash winnings for those under 18.
Passport redemption is from 6 to 8 p.m., with a dance, with music by Cowboy Cadillac, following from 8 to 11 p.m. The party includes a Christmas hat contest, food and drinks. Also, participants are encouraged to vote for their favorite decorated window.
For more information, contact Nancy at (541) 409-4276 or stop by Trash to Treasure in Sweet Home, or call the chamber at (541) 367-6186.
Christmas Tree Auction
The Sweet Home Alumni Foundation will host its 11th annual Decorated Tree Auction from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 6, in the Sweet Home High School cafeteria, 1641 Long St.
The decorated trees will be on display for public viewing immediately after the Grand Parade, in the cafeteria at the high school, until 2 p.m.
The event features the auctioning of live, decorated trees, sponsored and designed by businesses and individuals, to raise money for college scholarships offered by the foundation.
A silent auction, from 5:30 to 7 p.m., will feature wreaths and centerpieces, baked goods, hand-crafted items, and theme baskets. The live portion of the auction will start at 7:15 p.m., with trees going to the highest bidders.
Cost to attend is $15 per person, which includes elegant holiday hors d’oeuvres, desserts and festive punch. All proceeds from the tree auction go to support college scholarships for Sweet Home High School graduating seniors. Reservations are not necessary; pay at the door.
For more information or to donate to the silent auction, call (541) 401-3148.
Senior Center Potluck
and Bus Tour of Lights
The Sweet Home Senior Center, 880 18th Ave., will hold its annual potluck dinner and bus tour Thursday, Dec. 11.
The dinner, which starts at 5 p.m., will include ham provided by the Senior Center and Christmas music. The bus tour, which will visit light and Christmas card displays, starts at 6:30 p.m. and costs $1 per person. Tour participants will also judge the light displays for The New Era’s annual Christmas light display contest (see page 6).