Eric Reece
I remember as a youngster in school singing about Yuletide carols.
I didn’t know what Yuletide was, but I knew it had something to do with Christmas.
Originally, Yuletide was a Norse celebration during midwinter. There was a festival, feast, singing and a great Yuletide log that burned long into the night.
When the Norse people became Christians – since the Yuletide celebration was the same period as the Christmas season – it just naturally merged. Yuletide became known as the time around the Christmas season.
The winter festival, feast and singing continued – but shifted to a celebration surrounding the birth of a savior. The Yuletide log is now the name for a delicious chocolate buttercream cake.
Graham County is blessed to have a group that helps children and youth during Christmas called Yuletide Ministries. Yuletide Ministries was born out of the desire to provide support to families of children of Graham County during the Christmas season.
A previous group headed up a similar program – but when that ended, Ruby Turpin, members of Hosanna Baptist and folks from the community came together. It has been ably led for around 20 years by Turpin. As the need grew, the increase in requests necessitated change and it became a non-profit ministry in 2018.
Lil’ Thrifty Thrift Store became an arm of the ministry to raise funds to help pay for the Christmas gifts. In the past, a children's musical and meal was served to raise funds for the ministry. Today, the ministry operates through sales from its thrift store and the generosity of the folks and businesses of Graham County.
As the Christmas season approaches, families in Graham County are able to apply for their children to receive Christmas gifts from Yuletide Ministries. The gifts are much-needed items: clothes, warm coats, shoes and even Toys for Tots.
Every year, the need increases. Over 240 families applied this year – the highest number to apply by the deadline. The cost to provide the clothes, coat and shoes are $200-250 each child. With over 240 to look after, you are looking at an expense between $48,000-$60,000.
While the time to apply has passed, donations are still being accepted. You may mail a gift to:
P.O. Box 1818,
Robbinsville, NC 28771;
pay via Venmo, @yuletideministries; or make a deposit at First Citizens Bank.
For more details, stop by Lil’ Thrifty (394 Rodney Orr Bypass, Robbinsville); or call Mikayla Turpin Brashier at 828-735-6296.
Eric Reece is the faith columnist for The Graham Star. He is pastor of Robbinsville United Methodist Church and can be reached via email, ereece@wnccumc.net.