In Gratitude: Celebrating the Holidays in St. James

The St. James Service Club’s Celebrating the Holidays in St. James raised over $30,000 to benefit Brunswick County nonprofits, and that would not have been possible without the dedication, time, and talents of our event chairs, committee members, volunteers, hosts and hostesses, parking coordinators, bakers, doggie biscuit makers, tree and display decorators, bow makers, Artisans, Troon, and, of course, the St. James community who supported the Celebrating the Holidays events.

The Service Club extends its special thanks to the following:

Holiday Home Tour

Thank you to the Hooks, Driskill, Mason, Hemric, and Richards families for opening their homes and sharing their precious family heirlooms, traditions, and holiday memories.

Thanks to Chairs Jean Hembree and Bonnie Westbrook and the Home Tour Committee who creatively reimagined and brought back the Home Tour and worked tirelessly behind the scenes. Thank you to the decorators, hosts and hostesses in the homes. Many thanks to Holly Mayberry, the Gingerbread House team, and all of the gingerbread artists—such beautiful displays! Nancy Adelis and Robert Jerome organized a fantastic traffic control plan and trained a large cadre of traffic volunteers who kept everyone safe. We also appreciate St. James properties, the Chapel, and Fire Department for other festive stops.

Holiday Festival

Many thanks to Chairs Rena Gugliotti and Donna Hurry for their months of work and organization of the Festival. Special thanks to the Leads who filled the Festival with holiday spirit: [Barbara Sauter (Artists’ Demonstrations); Patty Pius and Judy VanWuyckhuyse (Bows); Judy Maurer (Displays); Ken Huber and the Special Friends (Dog Biscuit Sale); Debbie Ewing (Foyer Decoration, “Christmas Morning”); Paula Munger (Greeters and Ticket Takers); Connie Murphy and Judy Scaccianoce (Kris Kringle Market);Jean Castagno and Stacey Saveth (Photo with Santa Helpers); Robin Festa, Kathy Paske, Leslie Walsten (Raffles); Joe Castagno and Paula Skillman (Season of Hope Bakery); Colleen Cooper and Ingrid Dally (Signage); Eileen DeSerio and Sandy Bednarczyk (Sleigh Café); Jean Rakich (Staffing); Barbara and Rich Agar (Staging); and Sue Rosco and Joanne Peterson (Wreath and Small Tree Raffle).

We’d also like to acknowledge all of the individuals and organizations here who contributed decorated trees, displays, or demonstrated their artistic skills.

Holiday Reception and Concert We also appreciate Judy VanWuyckhuyse’s work to make the Holiday Reception lovely for all, and Barbara Agar’s efforts on the Holiday Concert.

Special thanks to Troon for their generous donations and especially to the residents of St. James who made this event such a success for Brunswick County nonprofits.

The Service Club wishes you and your families a Happy and Healthy Holiday Season!