By Sahar Chmais
Settled in the quaint town of Mountain City are homes decorated from top to bottom for Christmas. This tradition is not only for residents, but also tourists who drive through the brilliant lights to capture the magic. It has even helped restore joy for a family that recently moved to Kyle who felt like the Christmas spirit was lost.
Cynthia Norris and her husband moved to Kyle from Houston in 2013; in Houston, Norris’s family would visit the city’s grand light displays in various neighborhoods. This was their family tradition and with Mountain City’s displays, they found a new one.
“We moved in October of 2013,” Norris said, “and when Christmas rolled around, I was feeling especially homesick for our traditional Christmas outing to see some beautiful lights. I'm not sure if we were told, or stumbled upon it by accident, but when we found the lights of Mountain City, I felt an overwhelming feeling of peace that we were in the place God wanted us to be. We go every year now, and take everyone who visits us to see the beautiful displays at Mountain City.”
Neighbors across Mountain City decorate their yards and homes to give joy and delight to neighbors and passersby. And for many, the lights are part of celebrating the birth of Jesus, explained Pauline Tom, coordinator for the Recognition for Loving Mountain City Christmas Décor. Getting decorations up is not only a treat for the eyes, but residents also feel vested in going out to the yard and creating that Christmas magic.
Resident decorations for the recognition are finished by the second weekend after Thanksgiving and votes for the decorations are cast by the third Sunday after Thanksgiving. When votes are in, people are awarded yard signs for “best” category. .
Some categories include: people’s favorite, CHRISTmas, color, creativity, workshop for craftsmanship, Santa, elegance and more.
People are so invested in this tradition that there is one neighbor, 86-year-old Val Cass, who starts stringing lights in October, Tom said. The goal is to have decorations up by Thanksgiving weekend.
“For those who have most of their Christmas décor in place by Thanksgiving Weekend,” Tom said, “the entire holiday season is free from the cares of decorating which gives more time to spend with friends and family.”
Cass, who is ready before Thanksgiving has outdone himself again. Last summer, Cass suffered a series of strokes and was still able to get his 2020 display ready in early November. He was able to get 95% of his decorations up and he had his wife’s moral support, instructions and did not use any ladders.
Although Cass and all other participants are sticking to tradition as much as possible, COVID-19 has made a few changes for their plans.
This year, there will not be a “kid’s favorite” award because the Santa Party has been cancelled with “Tour de Lights.”
The other change onset by COVID-19 was early decorations – as early as the spring. In an effort to lift people’s spirit during these difficult days, people across the nation began putting up lights months before the holiday season.
Mayor Ralph McClendon’s wife, Marcia McClendon, read about this spirit-lifting idea and decided to bring it to life in the McClendon home. The couple put out a large cutout of the word “joy”, written in red. The “o,” painted white, has Jesus in the manger with Mary and Joseph, from their Christmas display.
This message has been displayed to passersby for seven months.
It is this message that Mountain City has been portraying and continues to standby, even during the past year of grievances.
“The light displays are a gift of love for all who drive past,” Tom told the Hays Free Press/News-Dispatch. “Some come in vans. Some drive past night after night. We’ve seen hayrides.”
