| Nov 25, 2016


(The article below is a write up from last year's 101 Nativities - The 2017 celebration, which will feature over 300 Nativities, is set for November 24th (evening)   November 25 and November 26 (daytime) EAch child can make thier own nativity in the craft room. Free entry and free refreshments - including home baking.)

When Jean Freeman started up 101 Nativities at the Cole Lake Free Methodist Church in 2010 she wanted to gather up as many nativity scenes as she could, from her own collection and those of friends, neighbours, and other parishioners from her church and other churches around the region.

Putting them all together into a display for public viewing in mid-November was her way of kicking off the Christmas season by focusing in on the most intimate aspect of the tradition, the birth of Jesus Christ.

“Before all of the commercial sales and everything else gets underway we thought this display of 101 Nativities, which was just a number we hoped to get to at the time, would set a bit of a mood for the season.”

Pretty quickly, it worked.

“Some children come here on opening night all dressed up. It's an event they look forward to all year,” she said on Saturday afternoon (November 19) as the show was ending its second day this year.

Freeman is joined by Kristine Caird along with a number of other volunteers in organising the show every year. This year there were 230 Nativity scenes laid out on tables and on a newly constructed display featuring 10 foot long recently milled rustic shelving that was made by a relative to help set off the scenes.

“We spend a lot of time in the couple of days before the show moving the different Nativities around so they look just right, and everyone works at it. Each morning I find it has changed because someone has had an idea and has moved things around, which is all part of making it just so,” said Caird.

The organisers never know if a crowd will come out, and this year the weather was so nice on the Saturday that they were worried the crowds would be thinner than normal, followed by a stormy Sunday.

“We are a tradition for people now,” said Caird, “and people seem to make it out at some point in the weekend to see their favourites, to see what is new this year, and even for the treats and coffee.”

The displays have a local and an international theme, with some displays coming from far afield (Africa, Europe, Israel, Haiti, South America) while others were purchased locally or hand-made. They are made of many different materials as well; ceramic, glass, wood, even coconut shells.

“One of the reasons we hold it so early is so people can have their Nativities back for their own displays. We get nervous about making sure nothing gets lost or damaged, especially as we grow every year, but so far we have a good record,” said Caird.

“It is a lot quicker to take down than it is too put up,” she added.

So far, the name 101 Nativities has held up, even through there were over 230 this year, but as they get closer to 300, pressure may mount to re-name the event. By 2025 we could be reporting on the Cole Lake 500.

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