Volunteer-fueled Dickens event grows in Antioch
Starting Saturday and running through Christmas, visitors to downtown Antioch will be greeted by a cast of characters reminiscent of mid-19th-century London.
In only its second season, the Dickens Holiday Village has doubled to feature 45 characters and other activities associated with the timeless novella "A Christmas Carol" by Charles Dickens.
The multipurpose program sponsored by the Antioch Chamber of Commerce is to provide holiday entertainment, attract visitors and showcase local merchants and attractions. Behind the scenes, dozens of volunteers have been working since February to plan the event and create the stationary characters strategically placed along sidewalks on Lake and Main streets.
"Each year, the program will grow with more handcrafted Dickens characters," said Barbara Porch, the chamber's executive director and a former village trustee. "This is a community public art program and it grows through volunteerism." Participating groups include the PM&L Theatre.
The chamber had sponsored the Art on the Chain program, which each year featured a different item, such as dogs, bears and Adirondack chairs, displayed for several months around town and then sold.
"Over five years, we raised over $78,000, which we donated every penny," she said.
However, a suggestion by Charlie Lyngaas, proprietor of Wilmot Heritage Antiques, was percolating. Lyngaas said he saw a Dickens-themed event in another town out East and thought it could work in Antioch.
"I suggested it not only as a way to get people to visit downtown Antioch, but to do something nobody else in the state was doing," he said. "This is something that was created from the ground up by volunteers in Antioch."
It took awhile for the idea to take root, but eventually the chamber bought in.
"After five years, it was time to do something different," Porch said. "We don't get sponsors, we don't sell the pieces. We work all year long on this."
Local artisans and volunteers made the wooden framework for the characters, sewed clothing, created the faces and fashioned storylines for each scene, with a description plaque at each location.
And should a white blanket settle over the scenes?
"We even have a snow brushing committee," Porch said. "You see all sorts of people volunteering."
The chamber had hoped to recoup some of its costs, but an online campaign fell short of the $3,750 goal and any money collected was refunded.
JJ Blinkers costume/magic shop at 896 Main St. serves as a welcome center, where souvenirs, merchandise and maps for self-guided tours will be available, and a guide for groups of 24 or more can be reserved. Porch said four bus tours of 50 people or more had been booked as of Monday.
On alternate Saturdays, carolers or musicians will roam the streets. On weekends, a grumbling Scrooge will hand out shiny pennies to kids. Other Dickens-related activities include teas and a Dickens dress-up. Visit www.antiochchamber.org for details.
Lyngaas said the scenes are not exclusively from the book but also illustrate daily life in the mid-1800s.
"It's one of those projects that's fun to do, fun to participate in, and it's fun to see everybody enjoying the finished product," he said.