CHRISTMAS MEMORIES

Photo above: Megan Parsons’ niece, Ella, partakes in the family’s Christmas cookie-making tradition.

Community leaders share favorite holiday memories

BY RACHEL MADISON AND SCOTT AKANEWICH, STAFF WRITERS

Liz Branigan, Mayor City of Liberty Hill

“One of my favorite Christmas memories was Christmas 2014 when we put up the first City Christmas tree. Our public works employees built a tree using a tall pole with strands of lights attached at the top and fanning out.

“The choirs of three local churches sang carols as the lights came on. My older grandchildren spun in circles under this tree as I danced with my baby grandson in my arms. “Afterward, my family and friends walked over to my house for brisket and tamales. That year my neighborhood also held a progressive Christmas dinner. We walked house to house for different courses, and everybody’s specialty was served. Mine was gumbo. The others featured barbecued brisket, cornbread, beans, homemade biscuits and cheesecake. During the dinner, we stopped at the house of a sick neighbor to sing ‘We Wish You a Merry Christmas’.

“Another Christmas memory is one year when we walked about caroling. We approached a particular house and as we walked up out came a person with pink plastic curlers in her hair wearing an old bathrobe with a puppy in her arms. She turned to face the choir standing on the street, so we sang to her. I tried not to laugh as we were singing.

“Christmas is wonderful and joyful in all times and places.”

Royce Graeter, Police Chief City of Liberty Hill

“Being with friends and family is always the best thing about Christmas for me. Besides our families at home, our police department family also gets together and celebrates with each other, our spouses and our kids.

“All the police department staff being able to collect Blue Santa donations and help get gifts to children is always a very memorable part of Christmas here in Liberty Hill for me. Each year I get to dress up as Blue Santa and ride my motorcycle through all our neighborhoods. There are always some great interactions while I’m out doing that, and the community seems to enjoy it.

Police Chief Royce Graeter says among his favorite holiday memories are those created as Blue Santa every year.

“One year, I believe it was 2020, I was riding through a neighborhood and saw a young boy and his dad on the sidewalk, about a block down the street. As the boy saw me approaching, he got very excited and took off running into the garage. He came back out with a bicycle that looked like a motorcycle and hopped on it so he could ride beside me on the sidewalk.

“There are a lot of interactions like that, and they are always fun.”

Paul Brandenburg, City Administrator City of Liberty Hill

“My favorite Christmas memory would have to be every Christmas morning of our four kids coming down the stairs to Christmas music, a crackling fire, decorations and a beautiful tree with presents stacked underneath it.

“The joy, excitement, and spirit of those four kiddos will live with me forever, even now, as they have grown up and moved on with the next chapters in their lives. The ornaments that they made or were given have been passed on to them to put on their own trees as a tradition. While distance may now separate us, they will always have a place at Mom and Dad’s home, and stairs to come down on Christmas.”

Susan Baker, Executive Director Operation Liberty Hill

“You never know what life is going to throw at you or gift you. My favorite Christmas is not a past event. On Oct. 7 of this year, my husband of 43 years, James, woke up with extreme abdominal pain.

Operation Liberty Hill Executive Director Susan Baker says while it didn't occur at Christmas, she is most thankful for the recovery from husband, James Baker.

“We went to the emergency room where he had to be sedated and intubated. I was asked for directives and was told that on a scale from one to 10, James was a nine on the critical scale. They said they would do everything they could to save him.

“I was ushered to an empty room while they prepared James for surgery while we waited for the surgeon. I paced back and forth in that little room repeating ‘Jesus save him, Jesus save him’. After emergency exploratory surgery, they found a duodenal perforated ulcer the size of a thumb. The amazing surgeon patched the ulcer and made a loop around the area to avoid the bile duct. His 12-inch incision was hard to look at. He was also on a ventilator for seven days.

“The day he woke up was the best gift God could have given me and the gift of life was of course the best gift James has ever received. After a week in the intensive care unit, another week in the hospital and a week in a rehab facility, he is healing a little more each day.

“It will take time for a full recovery, but we are grateful for every moment we have on this earth now. Don’t take the people you love for granted. The length of our time on earth is not guaranteed.

“There is no Christmas gift that can compare to the one I’ve already received. Thank you, Jesus, for answering my pleas and thank you for being the true reason for every season.”

Derrick Norris, Senior Pastor Andice Baptist Church

“Christmas is a special time of the year. It’s a time for family and friends to come together and celebrate the birth of Jesus. When I look back on my life, my childhood was not so great, no mother, no father, I lived with my grandparents back in Louisiana. My parents had gotten a divorce when I was only 10 months old. I joined the military at 17 years old and traveled the world celebrating Christmas all around the world. We were serving the military in Germany when our youngest son was born so my mom came out to visit for Christmas. It snowed so much she was not able to leave until sometime in January. My mom struggled with depression and drinking when I was young. My prayer was that she would one day know Jesus as I did. “Years later my mom quit drinking and led a fairly normal life and visited regularly at Christmas and it was always a special time. I continued to pray for her to one day accept the Lord. “In 2001, my mom developed stage 4 lung cancer and came to live with us in California. She would join us for church each Sunday and it was around Christmas of 2001 she gave her life to Jesus. We were able to baptize her at Christmas time and it was one of the most memorable and special Christmases ever. “One other great Christmas memory was getting to spend my first Christmas with my dad in 1998. Both have gone home to be with the Lord but the memories live on forever. This Christmas no matter what kind of relationship you have with your parents, reach out with the love of Christ. Life is too short not to be around those Christ has given you to love. Speaking of love we would love to invite you to our Christmas Eve Service at Andice Baptist Church on December 24th at 6:00pm. And join us for our Christmas Service on Christmas morning at 11:00am. May you feel God’s love this Christmas. Praying God blesses you in a great way this Christmas.”

Pastor Derrick Norris encourages others to reach out to family members during the holiday season.

Megan Parsons, President Liberty Hill Independent School District Board of Trustees

“Since I was a kid my family has always loved to bake and decorate cookies around Christmas. We use the same recipe passed down from a family friend for the dough. We roll it out and use Christmas cookie cutters to make all the fun Christmas shapes. Once they’re baked, we decorate with icing, sprinkles and all the fun extras that make Christmas cookies so great! I’ve done this with my own kids through the years and most recently have gotten to do it with my niece and nephew.”

Steve Snell, Superintendent Liberty Hill ISD

“One of my favorite Christmas memories is from when we were living in Lake Jackson back when I was a principal. Every year we would have a Christmas party at someone’s house with about 20 kids and hire a Santa and Mrs. Claus to visit. Our son Will was three and our daughter Madison was six at the time. Anyway, the house had an abovethe-ground pool and Will wanted to go in but we told him he couldn’t because it was too cold. But, he still climbed up the ladder and was sticking his arms in the water. When it was time for him to go see Santa, he wanted no part of it, so I had to go pick him up and put him on Santa’s lap with his sleeves soaking wet from the pool – the look on his face was priceless, while his sister was all smiles. It was a classic ‘Naughty and Nice’ moment.”

One of Liberty Hill ISD Superintendent Steve Snell’s favorite Christmas memories is when son Will was more interested in the swimming pool than visiting with Santa along with older sister Madison.

Tim Fleming The Hair Stop Salon & Barber Shop

“I grew up in Germany because my dad was in the Army, so there we would get up on Christmas Eve and open one present each. Then we would wake up at midnight, instead of waiting for the morning to open all the rest of our presents and go back to sleep again. Instead of turkey, the traditional dinner would always be rabbit – which is big in Germany – or goose.”

Growing up in Germany, Tim Fleming and his family would open presents at midnight on Christmas, then celebrate later in the day with a dinner of rabbit or goose.