The Live Nativity, a 70 year tradition at AHUMC, was held Sunday, December 6. We are so grateful to God for all who made this special event possible in this unusual and challenging year. The beautiful story of our Lord Jesus Christ’s birth offers us peace, hope, joy, and love anew. It is a deep privilege to share this wonderful story with one another and invite Christ to be born anew in each of us. Nearly 200 people gathered throughout the evening to view the four performances and many others saw it as they drove by on Basse Road. A highlight of the evening was having Rev. Harold & Patricia Burkhardt attend as Harold started the Nativity Scene in 1950 at the old church location on Broadway! Since 1980, Rev. Donna Strieb (along with Rev. Clyde Byrd until his death in 1997) has continued the tradition as staff coordinator.
This year’s Nativity Scene was chaired by Cathy and Charles Johnson. Vickie Kinder assisted behind the scenes. Fred Soupiset and Lance Tatum coordinated the set design with a great crew (Josh Gill, Andy Ahrens, Charles Johnson, Clarence Bray, Jim Kleypas, Jack McQuire, and David Gay), and John LaFrancois (Junior) provided light and sound which he has done for 20 years. The cast was chosen this year rather than our usual volunteers in order to provide safety protocols during the pandemic.
We praise God for our wonderful cast—Laura & Chad Porter as Mary and Joseph, Walker and Reeves Porter and their aunt Liz Pazin as angels, Robert and Vanessa Kongol with their children Elliott, Eloisa, and Ezra as shepherds, Gary Caswell as King Herod, Jamie Patterson and sons McCoy and Mitchell as the Three Wise Men. We are also grateful to our wonderful custodians who always help us with any need.
