It’s almost time for holiday fun at Muhlenberg County Public Libraries’ Thistle Cottage!
Pictures with Santa and the Jubilee of Trees Open House is on the calendar for Nov. 30 from 9 a.m. to noon.
Pictures with Santa is always a popular event at Thistle Cottage, library director Janet Harris said. Santa Claus takes time out of his busy schedule to visit and take photos with everyone who stops by the Cottage, and the library provides cookies, cocoa (and lemonade, depending on the weather) and craft activities for kids.
Harris added that it’s a free event open to everyone in the community. Community members are invited to bring their cameras and take advantage of the opportunity to snap photos with Santa or any of several decorated trees helping to dress up historic Thistle Cottage for the winter holidays.
Those decorated trees are part of another annual activity hosted by the library, the Jubilee of Trees. Thistle Cottage’s Amie Waltrip said this year’s Jubilee of Trees exhibit will include trees decorated by 15 local businesses and organizations.
The trees are inspired by fun children’s trees, and they’re all different, ranging from holiday stories like The Polar Express to timeless classics like The Little Engine that Could.
This year’s Jubilee features trees decorated by:
- Muhlenberg County Public Libraries
- Catfish Dock
- First Southern National Bank
- Greenville Tourism
- Holly J’s Grill
- Muhlenberg Arts Council
- Muhlenberg County Airport
- Muhlenberg County Cooperative Extension Service
- Muhlenberg County Extension Homemakers
- Muhlenberg County Opportunity Center
- Muhlenberg County Tourism
- MCTI
- Old National Bank
- Realtor Judy Westbrook
- Thistle Cottage Book Club
The Pictures with Santa event on Nov. 30 also serves as an open house for Jubilee of Trees, Harris said. “It’s the official start to our holiday season here at Thistle Cottage,” she said.
Visitors who want to take pictures with Santa will need to bring their own camera. Each guest will have a few moments to sit with Santa and get photos before he has to move on to the next guest.
Waltrip said that Santa will only be available to greet guests during the open house on Nov. 30, but the Jubilee of Trees exhibit remains open through the rest of December. The exhibit closes for the 2024 season on Dec. 30.
Waltrip pointed out that this year’s Pictures with Santa event is a little earlier on the calendar than usual. The library is hoping that, by scheduling the activity on the weekend after Thanksgiving instead of waiting until later in the year, families and friends will already be together and ready to take holiday photos. Plus, she said, since Nov. 30 is Small Business Saturday, people can save a trip by combining their visit with Santa and their shopping trip.
The earlier date should also give visitors more time to enjoy the resulting photos and possibly even use them for holiday cards, Waltrip added, and gives the community more time to appreciate the effort participating businesses and organizations put into decorating their trees for the Jubilee.
All visitors to the Jubilee of Trees can also show their appreciation – and maybe even win a small gift for themselves – by voting for their favorite tree at each visit to Thistle Cottage between Nov. 30 and Dec. 30. In addition to crowning a winning organization at the close of the exhibit, the voting slips also serve as registration for a prize drawing held when Jubilee of Trees closes.
The Jubilee of Trees is free to visit and, after the Nov. 30 open house, will be open to the public during regular business hours, Mon.-Fri. from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Thistle Cottage is located at 122 South Cherry Street in Greenville. For more information about the Jubilee of Trees or Pictures with Santa, contact Muhlenberg County Public Libraries’ Thistle Cottage at 270-338-4760.
