You can see it in the sky, you can feel it in the air — everything is about to change in Bethlehem, and you don’t want to miss it! See the Christmas story come to life at Wilshire on Friday, Dec. 19, at One Starry Night, an interactive Bethlehem experience with something for everyone.
You’ll enter at the census table and continue into the tented village bustling with hands-on activities: baking, carpentry, painting, herbs and spices, pottery, weaving, music and dancing. While roving musicians fill the air with sounds of the season, you’ll sample first-century delicacies at Bethlehem Inn, pet the sheep at the shepherds’ pen, and search the sky for the Christmas star at Stargazer Hill.
Before you leave the village, you’ll want to visit the Memory Making area where you can dress up like the villagers for a group photo to remember the night. And of course, all roads lead to the stable, where you’ll find the Holy Family waiting quietly and reverently for your visit.
One Starry Night opens at 6:30 p.m. and closes at 8:30 p.m. It’s all free and is Wilshire’s holiday gift to the community.
Help build the village
One Starry Night is less than a week away, and there still are plenty of ways to get involved: tents to raise and decorate, materials to move into place and other preparation to bring the village to life.
If you’d like to help build the village, you can come at any of these times:
• Tuesday, Dec. 16: 1–8 p.m.
• Wednesday, Dec. 17: 9 a.m.–4 p.m.
and 6–8 p.m.
• Thursday, Dec. 18: 9 a.m.–4 p.m. and 6–8 p.m. (This may change if we make great progress on Wednesday and Thursday morning.)
• Friday, Dec. 19: 9 a.m. until the end of the event. (Starting time for work may change if everything is almost ready.)
We’ll also need volunteers to help with clean-up after the event beginning at 9:15 p.m.
If you have any questions about how or when you can help, contact LeAnn Kite Hampton at KiteL@tx.rr.com.
Volunteer meeting Dec. 14
If you have volunteered to work with the booths and activities during the event, there is a short volunteer meeting in McIver Chapel after the 11 a.m. service on Sunday, Dec. 14. If you haven’t volunteered yet but have been considering it, come to the meeting, and we’ll help you find a place.
There are info sheets around the church to help spread the word about One Starry Night. Feel free to take some and share with friends and neighbors.