So, I met with our bishopric this week to discuss our ward Christmas party this year. It is starting to take a little shape. I’m still excited about the idea, but it is a lot of work too! This is what we have planned for sure.
We will start with a sit down dinner first. We have lots of elderly people in our ward, so we thought it would be nice to have servers at the dinner. This will most likely be our youth. We will pre-assemble the plates and pass those out so that people can sit and listen to our entertainment. I’m lucky as the planner of this event that I have already “booked” our entertainment. We are going to have a live 14 member band play music for us. Luckily for me, one of the leaders of this band is my father-in-law. They are going to play both Christmas, and non-Christmas music for us. Dancing might happen, but it is not required. The best part of our entertainment is that they’re free!! You can’t beat that at a ward party.
As people sit down to their table, they will have a little package to assemble that will include a quote/story, some ribbon, a plastic gift bag, and an ornament. They will simply tie the ribbon through the ornament, and through the quote/story, and place it in the bag ready to hand out to our neighbors as we go caroling. This is a great way to get everything assembled, and involve all the ward members in making a “gift”. After they assemble their gift, they will be served. An example of how it will go together will be in the center of the table. Voila! We will have 100 or so of these gift ornaments ready to go after dinner.
After dinner, we will divide up into about 5 groups and go caroling. We will have caroling leaders, and as the members come into the cultural hall, families will be given a number that will determine what caroling group they will be in. We will also have a short bishopric message before we leave for caroling. Some of the elderly people in our ward will most likely not participate in the caroling portion, but they will have enjoyed some good food, entertainment, and a message before heading home.
As we go out caroling, the kids will pass out our “gifts”, and we will sing for about an hour. We will finish up by meeting up at the chapel afterward for some hot chocolate. I’m looking forward to a great night of music, food, and fellowship! Now, I just have to work on the decorations!!
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