By Carol Fisher Linn
Ahhh, the holidays. With all the hustle and bustle that leads up to the Big Holiday of Christmas, Ellicottville traditionally has offered a calming respite from the chaos since 1987, when the first Christmas Stroll with the camel, Magi and Holy Family appeared on her streets. Norman Rockwell would have had a heyday capturing the scenes across the village. The brightly bundled laughing people on the horse drawn wagons, the carolers, the Christmas lights, the angels, shepherds, animals, Mary on a donkey led by Joseph, and the Magi with their camel. All this with a backdrop of the shimmering Ellicottville Gazebo where the school choir carols the Christmas message.
This is quite an annual event bringing in locals and visitors from far and wide happening this year Saturday, December 10. As with most events the seed for it happened over a cup of coffee with a couple of good friends. This event had several Founding Mothers including Mary D, MJ, Rita, and Marsha. Likely there may have been more, but this amateur historian is working from a tablet from those old days, lovingly shared by current Living Nativity Director, Gwen Bush. So, if you or one of your family members was part of the Founding Mothers, we send our respects as well. If you see Gwen, please give her your information. Along with the Mothers, names of supporters and helpers were scribbled in the notes, like Gene Raecher, who allowed use of the 1887 Building, Mike Stang, who built some of the props, and of course, Bobby McCarthy, The Voice of Ellicottville, who would narrate the entire journey of the angels, the shepherds, The Magi and The Holy Family. For those of you who have experienced the magical, clear “Voice of Ellicottville” at any Ellicottville event, take a moment to close your eyes and listen for him now. Here, I’ll give you a minute … Bobby always knew the exact correct thing to say, prepared himself in advance and knew how to introduce his audience to the magic of the moment. Hope you just heard him. I did. He left us in June of 2016. He is sorely missed, not only by us, but by the travelers he accompanied to Ireland, squiring them around to his favorite haunts and Irish pubs. Joey D also made an appearance as the Innkeeper, in his personally-owned, culturally-correct garments, who turned the weary travelers away when they knocked on the door.
What is a Christmas event without costumes? Gwen Bush informs us that many of the costumes used today … The Magi, the shepherds, some angels … are still in use to this day. As the troupe of angels grew, more costumes have been added, but it’s kind of fun to imagine Joyce’s or Mary D’s (or whose ever they were) velvet drapes that the seamstresses in their group turned into magnificent costumes that continue to be part of the Stroll.
Mr. and Mrs. Claus (Bob and Rita S,) beckoned the kids from the Inn windows to come in and partake of hot cocoa and home-made cookies. Yes, home-made by more of the Mothers. A request was made to BOCES for the use of their home-economics ovens. Permission was granted and in marched, Joyce E, Vicky A, Rita S, Mary D, Gigi K, and Bev W., decked out in aprons and ready to bake! Today, 300 cookies are prepared, so it’s conceivable that that is how many the Mothers baked! Imagine, if you will, the dedication and time spent on this one project alone. Jane D. oversaw the gingerbread houses displayed on the Friday before the Stroll. The team would decorate the building, which quite honestly looks like a model for a gingerbread house. It was quite festive. And, we couldn’t finish this historic accounting before we tip our reindeer horns to MJ for the fabulous job, she has done from day one with running the reindeer parade. It wouldn’t be The Stroll without all those beloved puppies and kitties and llamas and some pretty imaginable animals in days gone by.
Now that you know the back story, stay tuned for the up-to-date news about this year’s Stroll in the next issue of The Villager Newspaper. It’s gonna be great!