No Small Collection
Many people enjoy collecting things, but some are better at it than others. When it comes to collecting and displaying items with a Christmas theme, we have three very talented people right here in our community.
Carrie King has been collecting Christmas village pieces since around 1995.
“I got the idea from a friend who had a little village,” she explained. “After I started up my collection, my family started giving me additional pieces as gifts for my birthday, which is right after Christmas. I have 53 buildings in my village now, and I don’t know how many extra pieces - people, animals, vehicles, trees and such. One time I ran across this little car, which is an exact replica of the first car I ever owned, and of course I had to add it to the scene.”
King displays her village around the Christmas tree in her living room, creating a hillside effect by stacking boxes and covering them with white cloth, so that her entire village can be easily viewed. Her husband helps her carry the boxes up and down from the basement, but she does all the setting-up herself.
“I keep telling myself I don’t need any more, but every year I seem to acquire at least one or two more pieces, either as gifts or I buy them myself.
“My family enjoys it,” she said. “We have two children, Katie and Joe, and four grandchildren, Parker, 21, Grant, 18, Cody, 15, and Teigan, 13. They’ll all be here for Christmas, and we’ll sit together and enjoy the tree, the lights, and the village.”
Roxanne McFarland also has a Christmas village collection. Hers is on display at the Montgomery County History Center.
“It’s a good thing I can display it here,” she said, “because it would never fit into my house any more. I’ve got 72 build ings, 7 moving carnival pieces, a train running around on a track, and lots and lots of extra stuff. There’s a Dickens neighborhood with Scrooge, Bob Cratchet and Tiny Tim, and I’ve even got the Montgomery County Courthouse and the Red Oak train station.”
McFarland said a few little antique pieces given to her by her grandfather when she was a little girl, made of cardboard, with lights, are what probably got her interested in creating her village.
“My husband has helped me collect quite a few pieces, and my mom and sister have helped too. I try to make it as realistic as I can so you could feel like you were living in it.”
Also on display at the History Center are some of Jim Peterson’s nutcrackers.
“I’ve been an avid collector since my twenties,” he said, “and now I’m 67. I’ve got a beautiful collection of ceramic trees, and I also used to collect nativity sets. I recently donated one of those to Bethlehem Lutheran Church here in Red Oak.
“But of course nutcrackers are a big thing for anyone interested in Christmas collections.
“Last year Dave and Roxanne McFarland were at my home and they saw some of my nutcrackers, and asked if I would allow them to display them at the History Center this year, and I said yes, of course. I brought 166 of my nutcrackers over. I’ve got at least 150 more at home.”
The largest nutcracker on display is about four feet high, and the smallest less than two inches. Many are traditional in appearance, while others are quite unusual. One is a motorized puppet that dances to music from the Nutcracker Ballet Suite.
“I insist that all of my nutcrackers be fully functional,” Peterson said. “I don’t want any that are just models, they have to actually be able to crack nuts.”