PENDLETON NEWS: AREA CHURCHES PROVIDE NATIVITY SCENE

I just love our little town and the experience with the Nativity Scene is one of the reasons. First, it was just a few of us talking last Christmas about how wonderful it would be to have a Nativity Scene on the property coming into town that belongs to the Presbyterian Church. We decided to check with them and see if they were interested in taking it on as a project. At the first Lenten Lunch, I talked again to one of the ladies at the Presbyterian Church and she said that she would see if they could take it on. They really wanted to see this happen but realized that they didn't have the manpower to do. At that time, we were thinking of having the figures handmade out of wood and painted by volunteers. The problem with storage also came up and we were all about to give up on the idea when I just happened on a beautiful Nativity Scene for sale on Amazon. It just really caught my eye so I wrote to the company and asked if it was Made In The USA which was a must. I got back a wonderful reply explaining how this boat company had gone to making yard art in order to save their company when the economy got so bad a couple of years ago. I loved the story and loved finding out that it was made in the Florida. I talked to the other two women: Carol Smith of the Presbyterian Church and Davie Kirkley of Pendleton United Methodist Church and asked them if they would like to get together for a meeting. I had created a "mock up" of sorts showing what it would look like on the property. At that time, we figured we could only afford a couple of pieces of the Standard Size: Davie had met me at the property with a 4 ft ladder that we stood up to get the right size. We also talked about a banner to go under the Welcome To Pendleton sign that is there. I talked to my friend, Hevy Mann, and he said that he would donate the banner. It will read: Merry Christmas (top line) Pendleton Area Churches (bottom Line).

The more we met and the more we talked and the more we researched,we found that it was available in a Large size from the company and I called them and was told that we would save $300 by buying the whole set with all the figures versus buying one a year and adding to it. So, where was the money going to come from. We set up a meeting of the Alliance of Pendleton Area Churches and had the following as a hand out.

We also had a hand out with Q & A that looked like this:

Nativity Scene for Pendleton!

Questions and Answers

Where will the Nativity Scene be? It will placed in the lot between Broad Street and Mechanic Street where the Log Cabin used to stand. This property belongs to Pendleton Presbyterian Church and they have given their permission.
What is the total cost of the Nativity Scene and who will place the order?

$1373.00 Large Nativity Scene

145.80 Shipping

60.00 Solar Spot Lights

Total: $1,578.80

No sales tax if ordered by a church.

Banner will be donated by Hevy Mann. We hope to get a tree donated to put in front of the metal box. We also hope to get some hay/straw donated to place around the Nativity Scene.

Pendleton Presbyterian will use a money order to place the order.

What does this Nativity Scene look like?

It is white, silhouette style and made out of 3/4" Thick Marine Grade Plastic Sheet. Additional Add On's are Composed of 1/2" Thick Marine Grade Plastic Sheet. It is MADE IN THEUSA.

· Composed of Marine Grade Plastic Designed to Last Many Years

· Entire Set Breaks Down to Store in 4 Compact 45" x 30" x 4" Boxes

Website: http://www.outdoornativitysets.com

Sizes: This Set Includes:

Holy Family With Manger	72" Tall x 67" Wide x 40" Deep
Pair of Upright Angels	40" Tall x 34" Wide (each)
First Wise Man	29.375" Tall x 24.625" Wide
Second Wise Man	41.375" Tall x 23.75" Wide
Third Wise Man	41" Tall x 27" Wide
Shepherd With Sheep	39.5" Tall x 48" Wide
Calf	25.5" Tall x 40" Wide
Donkey	21" Tall x 36" Wide
Camel	28.5" Tall x 58.375" Wide

This Set Includes all Brackets & Stakes Required to Display your Nativity Scene

A Money Order will be sent from Pendleton Presbyterian Church when the total has been raised.

How will the money be raised? Each church will Collect Donations before Sept 30 at your church and mail one check made out to Presbyterian Women and mailed to:

Marjorie Smith PO Box 68 Pendleton SC 29670

Over $1,000 has already been raised as of Sept 10, 2012.

What happens if more money is raised than is needed? All extra monies will be donated to the Magi Project with Pendleton Presbyterian writing a check for the balance to Pendleton United Methodist Church marked for “Magi”. It was later decided to divide the extra money between the Magi program and the Snack Pack program.

Who will acknowledge donations? Each church is responsible for acknowledging their donations
Where will the 4 boxes be stored and who will be responsible for them? Pendleton Presbyterian will store the boxes and be responsible for them.
When will it be set up and by whom? The Nativity Scene will be set up Saturday morning after Thanksgiving (November 24) beginning at 8:30 am. Volunteers will be asked to help with a different church being in charge each year..
When will it be taken down and by whom? To be decided
Why not start small and add to it each year? We save approximately $300 by ordering the complete set.
What kind of preparation will be needed for the lot? We would like to have a work day on Sept 29 to clean up this area by mowing, weeding, etc.
Are there any concerns regarding town sign ordinance, etc? We have spoken with the Town Planner and since this is temporary, we are clear to proceed.

Thank you,

Nancy Hellams 934-3461

Carol Smith

Davie Kirkley

We each told our church membership about the project and money started to come it. It was amazing. We will be ordering the Large Complete Nativity Scene on Monday October 8, 2012 and are so excited about it. The Presbyterian Church will be in charge of erecting it on the Saturday following Thanksgiving and we hope to have a special dedication service on that Sunday immediately following Church services.

Also, I decided that I would create one of my webpages on Squidoo and try to sell some of these wonderful Nativity Scenes and raise a little money for our Veterans Park. Check it out:

Outdoor Nativity Set