Deacon shows Christmas ornaments collected from around the globe

By Linda Linonis | December 5, 2015 at 12:06a.m.

By LINDA M. LINONIS

YOUNGSTOWN

The mood was festive as members of First Presbyterian Women of First Presbyterian Church, 201 Wick Ave., gathered this week at the church to hear about Christmas ornaments and to do a good deed.

Becky Murray, a church deacon, presented a program on “Christmas Ornaments Around the World.”

She and her husband, Terry, spent their careers as international teachers. They’ve traveled to the seven continents – Asia, Africa, North and South America, Europe, Australia and Antarctica (on a cruise). On a recent trip to South Africa, Becky Murray fell and broke a hip. On crutches, and with some help from fellow First Presbyterian Women, she

arranged ornaments as centerpieces on tables.

Murray counts Mambo Santa as one of her most-unusual Christmas decorations. She even has the original box it came in. What’s surprising about Mambo is that she found it while she and her husband were teaching in Jubail, Saudi Arabia. They taught there for many years, leaving in 1999.

“It has a lot of flash,” Murray said of the battery-powered Santa that lights up and plays a drum. “I don’t think they realized it was a Christmas decoration.”

Murray said observing Christmas was not something done in that country. She recalled how the “religious police” told friends to “move the Christmas tree” out of the window. “We had to be careful when celebrating Christmas ... even not mentioning it in phone calls,” she said. The Murrays had a tree, she said, and disguised Yule get-togethers as plain social gatherings.

Murray estimated she has some 75 Christmas decorations from around the world, though she acknowledged there probably are more. “It’s an embarrassment of a collection,” she said with a smile, adding it’s difficult to resist unique items from the countries they have visited. And the items serve as mementos of good memories of their travels.

Among Murray’s collection are a tan-suited Santa from Sorrento, Italy, and a Pinocchio figure, also from Italy; a metal tree and Nativity set crafted from twigs and banana fronds from Zimbabwe; a colored-glass angel from the south Caribbean; a Delft blue-outfitted Santa from Holland; a rocking horse from Portugal; a small leather shoe ornament from Turkey; a pottery Santa holding children from Mexico; and a blue-eyed, long-bearded wooden Santa figure from Poland.

From Russia, Murray had multiple items including colorful nesting dolls, a decorated egg and a tall, regal-looking Santa with an ornately decorated long coat holding a Christmas tree. Other decorations she found in places such as Thailand, Vietnam and an incense-burning German Santa that spouts smoke out of its mouth.

The best Christmas present from faraway lands will be the presence this year of the Murrays’ children who are teachers in international schools. They are traveling from Vietnam and Brazil.

After the program and refreshments, the women packed winter-care packages for residents at neighboring Gutknecht Towers. Members of First Prebyterian Church and the former Butler Presbyterian Church conduct a monthly Bible study. Margie Patterson, moderator of First Presbyterian Women, said First Presbyterian deacons provide the lunch. The church group also has recreational activities such as bingo.

The care packages, earmarked for Bible-study participants, will be delivered next week. They include lip balm, hats, gloves, lotion and a candy cane. The church members will distribute 60 adult gift bags and 10 children’s bags.