Morris Township Collector Puts Nativities on Display

To say Morris Township attorney Rebecca Kirkman loves Christmas would be an understatement.

She has spent preparing her nativity to be displayed at the annual Community Crèche Christmas Celebration hosted by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints at 283 James Street.  

Around 70 of her crèches will be among nearly 300 nativities from around the world featured this weekend at the free exhibit All the crèches are staged in the large multi-purpose room that has been transformed into a winter wonderland.  

Among some of the crèches Kirkman plans to display are an Icelandic crèche with Mary bundled in native woven fabric, a Haitian nativity scene crafted from an oil barrel, a Byzantine-style ceramic plaque from Turkey, a Kenyan crèche fashioned from banana leaves, and a handcrafted crèche by mountain artists in the Dominican Republic.  

The Community Crèche Christmas Celebration, which is free and open to the public, also features several musical performances. Featured performers are Express Male, an independent vocal ensemble within The Morris Choral Society, and Wendy Lane Bailey, a local vocalist and recording artist, who will perform on Saturday evening at 7:10 p.m.  

A live nativity tableau will also be enacted at scheduled times throughout the evening on Saturday and Sunday. A children’s room for young children will have Christmas crafts.  

The hours for the exhibit are Friday from 6-8 p.m.; Saturday from 1-8 p.m.; and Sunday, 3-7 p.m. There is no charge for admission. For a list of performers or directions, visit www.communitycreche.org.