In all truth it's really fun to be in the spot light....

Anne here: late one afternoon last week, Jerry Wolford photographer with News Record, and Wes Beeson dropped by Toad Hall, and found us wrapped up with the big Lighted Christmas ball, a three foot diameter sphere loaded with 1,200 multi-colored mini lights. Jerry took tons of pictures while Jonathan roped Jerry and Wes into helping us into raising the big ball. Once aloft, Jonathan's next task was to Huck Finn our News-Record friends into helping him launch three more pull lines high up in an Oak tree along Ridgeway Drive. That done, we said goodbye, set about lifting a few more Lighted Christmas balls, and had no idea where Jerry's project was going.  We saw a photo on the front page of the paper but didn't go to the website to see the slide show because we were trying to get the house decorated and get closure on some other projects around the house.  

About mid-afternoon, friends Linda and Rod called to invite us over to watch the launching of a Christmas decoration Rod dreamed up (literally).  Fortified with peppermint mochas, Rod, Linda, Jonathan and I fastened seine line, parachute cord, and one pulley to Rod's beautiful star, a five foot high three dimensional, handmade, wrapped in 800 clear mini lights.  Once launched to its full 75 feet (you can see it from Cornwallis Drive and from other points in Irving Park), I called the boys to their reward: Jerry Wolford's multi-media interpretation of the Sunset Hills Lighted Christmas balls. Jerry nailed it, it's about the fellowship, community, and sharing the abundance of our pantries with others.

Come see the lights. Bring food. Bring friends and if our front door is open, stop in.

Last 100 visits to LCB

World map showing last 100 visits to Lighted Christmas Balls blog.  'afternoon, Australia. 

rain doesn't slow food drive

It rained Monday and Tuesday and drizzled off and on all day today. That hasn't slowed visits to the yellow barrel at the four-way stop sign at Ridgeway and Rolling and the utility trailer at the corner of Madison and Ridgeway. People put dry goods in the big red Rubbermaid tub and secured food-filled plastic bags to keep the rain out. I didn't take pics of each night's haul, but now that it's Wednesday night and my Suburban is full, I need to drop it off at the Food Pantry and get ready for the weekend. Anne and I are going to do a little adding up this weekend - she has one of those little counter things that ticket takers use to count attendance at concerts and sporting events. We'll let you know the count...and also how much food has been contributed so far.

LCB's are glowing all over. There's an extra special 13 Lighted Christmas Balls on Cardinal Wood Drive. It stays lit day and night keeping vigil, encouraging all who pass by and those who live there. If you're over that way, check it out.

This truck may top our lights!!!!!!!!!!!!

When I saw this....I said "Jonathan, stop whatever you are doing and get him to stop." I just had to have a photo of this WONDERFUL truck. It belongs to our new friend(as of last night) Mark in Kernersville. He brings his cute daughter April over for ballet classes - she is int the middle of practicing for the Nutcracker. Look at this Christmas display in the bed of this wonderful 1981 fully restored Dodge crewcab (I hope I got this right) ANYWAY...they were so nice, they pulled over, we took photos...and visited. Mark had decorated it just for fun for a spontaneous annual parade in Catsquare NC (I hope I got that right too) Mark and his family moved to NC from Arizona and is an engineer at Volvo Trucks. In my opinion we are lucky to have him drive through...come often, bring your friends and some canned food for the trailer in the front yard.


NEWS FLASH #1 We sent 747 pounds of canned goods over to 2nd Harvest this morning with Gardner....next load going to Urban Ministry

NEWSFLASH #2 We got a huge discount(actually it was a credit) from Lowe's(good to shop there - they treated us right on this deal) We were credited enough to give each of you $1 per ball back - What an operational and accounting nightmare that would be so we made the decision to send the profits to Urban Ministry $127 and Second Harvest $127 and credited the remaining $$ to the lighted Christmas ball project for the kids in the tutoring progam at Grace Community Church in Glenwood - they each got a ball to take home this year as well as one to hang in the front of the church. It is worth a drive to 643 West Lee Street to see the 60 hanging there.

WFMY News 2

WFMY reporter Kerri Hartsfield and camera man John Brumbaugh pulled into the Grace Community Church parking lot late Monday afternoon. It's a good thing they did; Jeff, Justin, Emmett, and Jonathan needed just two more pairs of hands to raise the 60 or so Lighted Christmas balls that had been made by kids in the Glenwood Tutoring Program, and Kerri and John jumped right in and helped. Kerri had to make several trips to her car to thaw out, and John clutched his camcorder and shivered now and again and didn't get to thaw out. The two stayed until all the trees glowed with lights before heading to Sunset Hills for a different perspetive and to broadcast the 11:00 pm news, 'live from the corner of Ridgeway and Madison.' Afterward, I went outside thank them for all they had done to raise the awareness for hunger, and how together, our communities can solve a real live problem affecting one in eight North Carolinians and one in five children. Seeing the true spirit of Christmas reflected in their eyes was gratifying; grinning, I cautioned them that they're now hooked on Lighted Christmas balls for life and invited them to come back often and enjoy the beauty when they're off the clock.