Chapter 1: Saving Christmas Manor (SCM)

It's Christmas time in Hopestown...

Livy stared at the grand staircase leading down to the foyer. The hand carved railings, a dark mahogany had faded over time, and would need to be re-stained. The stair runner needed to be replaced. The carpet was a deep pine green, the kind that instantly made one think of #Christmas. There were shiny gold threads that outlined crimson red roses that almost danced within the pine green color, reminiscent of the Sugar Plum Fairy dancing. The carpet told the story of a grand house coming alive at Christmas. But, one hundred years of sun damage and a hundred years of people’s shoes, reduced the story to a faded memory. Livy loved this estate. The house had experienced much over its lifetime, bringing together the residents of Hopestown for weddings, funerals, baptisms, celebrations, holidays, and of course, the annual Christmas Gala.

According to local folklore, Mr. Parker, the original owner, had been larger than life. A generous and kind man to his core, when he succeeded, everyone succeeded. Building Noel Manor had been a labor of love for the entire town. It took a year to build, and opened to the public Christmas Eve, December 1919. The gathering would eventually become the Christmas Gala, but that night was celebrating everyone who had made Noel Manor into a reality. A generous, and loving man to his core, Mr. Parker, instilled those same qualities into his children, and they in turn instilled it in their children, all the way down to Nan.

Nan Parker was the last member of the Parker family in the area, her children having moved away decades before. Her son Charles lived in Boston, while her daughter Charlotte lived in Chicago with her three children, and husband. Neither of her children wanted to stay in Hopestown, and help manage the mansion for her, deciding to forge their own paths instead. Nan, always a supportive mother, urged both of them to live their lives, and follow their dreams. After Charles, and Charlotte left, and Nan’s husband passed away, the town willingly took on the role of assisting Nan. Unfortunately, in the last few years, house repairs and upkeep grew exponentially.

A leaky roof, a kitchen fire in 2003, old copper pipes that needed to be replaced, and water damage in the cellar from the great flood of 1985 had all contributed to the house’s slow decline. When Nan’s husband fell ill, his medical treatments and medication were incredibly expensive. With the Parker’s facing a mountain of medical bills, she ended up having to take out a mortgage on the house until her husband passed away, making house upkeep more of a financial burden. The first floor was already a historical museum, charging an admissions fee to help keep them afloat. But in recent years, interest in Noel Manor had gone down, which only added to the financial predicament Nan current found herself. While the house had survived a lifetime of trials and tribulations, it had also seen its share of happy times, particularly at Christmas.

The manor was locally known as the house of “Christmas Magic”. Local legend had it every year someone in the community who attended the Christmas Gala, and needed it the most, would experience a Christmas miracle. The first year it happened, was 1920. Orphans from the VanSpearan Orphanage had been invited to attend the gala that year. The twenty boys and girls, dressed in their Sunday’s best, excitedly lined up, single-file, entering the grand foyer that led into the house. The children thought they were coming for a Christmas Eve Party, but little did they know all of them would be adopted that evening into loving homes. It wasn’t supposed to happen that way. Mrs. Parker had fallen in love with a little two-year-old named Lily along with her brother Peter. Until that point, Mrs. Parker had been unable to have a child. As soon as the pair walked into the room dressed in crimson red and gold, she was a goner. Right then and there, she scooped those children up into her arms, and that was that. Mr. Parker, touched by his wife’s love, and grace, decided on this second annual Christmas gathering, he would try to get all of the children adopted.

Throughout that fateful evening, he challenged all of his friends from New York and Boston to open their hearts, and homes, to the children. All were adopted that night, and many went on to be upstanding members of the community. One became an appellate judge for the state of Massachusetts, one was a state senator, another became a Pulitzer winning writer, a famous baker, a civil rights activist, a Nobel winning scientist, and the list went on. Lily and Peter grew up to co-own the manor after Mr. Parker died. Peter raised his family in the house, while Lily bought a home in town after marrying the local mayor. Peter had two children: Nan, and Andy Parker. Since that fateful night in 1920, Noel Manor was a place of hope and a beacon of light when folks lost their way, especially at Christmas.

Thanks for reading! Until next time...all my healing love,

K