LIFESTYLES
WEEKEND, DECEMBER 23-24, 2017
Staff photo by Tammy Malgesini
Presents sit under the tree at the home of Shawn Logue. The Hermiston woman hosted a Dec. 16 Christmas potluck and gift exchange for members
of an informal coffee klatch.
By TAMMY MALGESINI
East Oregonian
Brightly wrapped packages
are a familiar sight under
Christmas trees across the
world.
Many children grow up
believing in Santa Claus. You
know the story — the jolly
old elf dons a red suit, hitches
up a team of reindeer and fl ies
through the night delivering
gifts on Christmas Eve.
Growing up in a Chris-
tian home and married to
a minister, Maria Hurty of
Stanfi eld encourages people
to not lose sight of the reason
for the season. In her advent
devotional, “Christmas Crazy
to Jesus Joy!,” she admits to
“doing it wrong” for many
years.
Many
people,
Hurty
included, was more focused
on extravagant dinners, deco-
rations to outdo the neighbors
and shopping ‘til she dropped.
A time-honored tradition
of the holiday season is to
give and receive presents.
Rev. Billy Graham’s website
suggests that the centuries-old
practice seems to replicate
the biblical story of the wise
men presenting gifts of gold,
frankincense and myrrh when
they met baby Jesus.
But the question remains —
what about the man in the red
suit? He’s known by various
names, including St. Nicholas.
Many legends and stories
have swirled around about
the real Nicholas, who lived
nearly 2,000 years ago. Hurty
shares about the tradition of
hanging stockings and fi lling
them with blessings.
In her book, available on
Amazon.com, Hurty intro-
duces people to Nicholas,
who enjoyed helping others
by sharing his wealth. As the
story is told, Nicholas became
aware of a destitute father who
considered selling his daugh-
ters into servitude.
“When Nicholas heard of
their predicament, he crept
into their home undetected and
put a sack of gold into each of
their stockings, which were
hanging by the fi re to dry,”
Hurty said.
While she stresses that
Christmas isn’t about Santa
Claus, Hurty still encourages
people to give of themselves
by using their resources or
talents to bless others.
And it’s not necessary to go
Staff photo by Tammy Malgesini
Haley Jones opens an ornament-shaped hand soap dispenser while Carol Greene looks
on during a 2015 Christmas potluck and sock exchange at the home of Deana Cordell in
Hermiston.
deep into debt. Hurty suggests
fi lling stockings with bless-
ings, which can include small
gifts, candy or a short letter.
She shared about the touching
sentiments of a handwritten
note from her then 10-year-old
son, Hobs.
“I love you more than TV”
melted the mom’s heart more
than any store-bought gift ever
could.
Spreading Christmas joy
The spirit of Christmas
can include spreading the joy
of the season, appreciation
of unwrapping a present
that’s needed or the touching
sentiments of something
unexpected. Several Eastern
Oregon residents shared what
the gift of giving and receiving
means to them.
• Sen. Bill Hansell of
Athena fi nds cutting fi rewood
for his wood stove is very
therapeutic. However, when
his aging chainsaw was
becoming less dependable, he
was thrilled when his children
pitched in and bought him a
brand new Stihl chainsaw.
• Several years ago, Roberta
Lavadour of Pendleton had
randomly complained about
her mismatched fl atware.
Lavadour said her daughter,
Lindsay, who listens for hints
and clues throughout the year,
bought her a beautiful set of
fl atware.
“It’s really special when
Staff photo by Tammy Malgesini
Christina Haight and Breena Wadekamper, both 17, volun-
teered during an “I Love My City” gift wrapping project
Dec. 16 at Walmart in Hermiston.
someone really knows you,
and you know they’ve been
listening to you,” Lavadour
said. “Also, the nice thing is I
think of her every day when I
use it.”
• Over the years Heidi
Sipe of Umatilla had given
money to her brother when he
needed help with rent, buying
groceries or paying bills.
Opening a Christmas card 11
years ago, she was surprised
when a whole wad of cash
fell out. Never expecting to be
repaid, Sipe is still moved to
tears when she thinks about it.
“I never kept track of the
money I gave him, but he did,”
Sipe said. “It made me realize
he had become a man.”
• Erica Sandoval of the
Hermiston Police Department
is looking forward to giving
each of her team members
at work a special ink pen.
Working with them for the
past year, Sandoval said the
camaraderie and brotherhood
has rejuvenated her. Each
Thin Blue Line Pen is hand-
crafted from military-fi red
.308 rounds. She said it will
provide a lasting reminder of
the connections she’s made
with her team.
• Moving to Pendleton in
October 2016, fi re chief Mike
Ciraulo said he and his wife,
Gilda, were embraced by the
community.
“We felt so welcome and
blessed by the community,” he
said.
As a result of the warmth,
the Ciraulos wanted to give
back to the community.
Ciraulo said they decided to
go all out in decorating their
Northwest Ellis Avenue home.
Ciraulo views the two-month
long project as a gift to the
community and as a way to
say thanks.
“Everyone is super excited
— it just warms out hearts,”
he said.
• Rep. Greg Smith of
Heppner shared about a recent
Christmas blessing that his son
and daughter-in-law received.
Grant, who is studying law,
and Vivian, who is in nursing
school, slid on an icy road and
slammed into an ornamental
mailbox attached to the gated
home of a 10,000-square-foot
mansion in Eugene. Although
they were unharmed, the crash
destroyed the ornamental
mailbox. And their vehicle,
Smith said, which they only
carry liability insurance on,
was undriveable.
Panicked, with thoughts of
being sued, they didn’t know
how they would pay for the
property damage, including to
their only mode of transporta-
tion.
Hearing the commotion, the
homeowner’s groundskeeper
came out. His biggest concerns
were if they were injured and
that they needed to get to
school.
What happened next, Smith
said, is amazing. The guy took
them to school, came back
later to pick them up and then
took them back to meet the
elderly woman.
She quickly helped in
settling their nerves. Not only
did she appear unfazed, she
told them not to worry about
the mailbox. And then told
them, “I’m going to have my
groundskeeper take your car to
get fi xed as my Christmas gift
to you.”