Live Nativity attracts hundreds to Warrenville church

On two cold winter evenings in December, a crowd of a few hundred people gathers outside Trinity Lutheran Church in Warrenville.

Visitors sit on bales of hay to watch angels, shepherds and a real baby in the manger in the church's annual outdoor Live Nativity.

“It's just really magical,” said church member Jackie Bruckner, who has helped put on the Nativity since it began 15 years ago. “Hearing that it is meaningful to other people makes it special.”

This year's Nativity includes two 30-minute performances at 6 and 7 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 11, and at 5 and 6 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 12, at the church, Curtis Avenue and Warrenville Road. After each performance, children are invited up to see Baby Jesus and pet the live animals. Wise men hand candy to the crowd. Visitors are welcomed inside with hot chocolate and cookies.

Rain or snow doesn't stop the event, said Warrenville resident Char Schluchter, who has coordinated the Nativity since its start in 1996. She recalled one year she was debating whether to call it off or move it inside because of the rain.

“What amazed me the most, people were out there in umbrellas,” she said. “I think it makes a tremendous difference that it's outside for lots of reasons. One, it adds more realism.”

People who don't normally attend church also may feel freer to come to an outdoor event, she said. Schluchter estimated that 500 people attend each night, depending on the weather. Last year, some visitors came from as far away as Rockford and St. Louis.

“I know it's a blessing. It helps make our Christmas every year,” she said.

Outside, 100 luminarias line the walkway. Bruckner takes charge of the inside decorations, which include four to 20 Nativity sets and three to five Christmas trees.

“We try to have a variety of Christmas trees and Nativity sets that demonstrate some diversity,” she said.

The donkeys, goats and other animals brought in from Friendly Farms in DeKalb add color and sound to the scene, Bruckner said.

“You never know when they're going to chime in,” she said.

Putting on the production requires a major effort from the small congregation that has an average Sunday attendance of 140. More than 80 volunteers get involved in bringing the Nativity to life, Schluchter said.

Planning begins in August. Children, teens and adults sign up for roles to play in the scene of Christ's birth. A narrator tells the story. The choir invites visitors to join in singing popular Christmas carols.

Behind the scenes, other volunteers fit costumes, handle the lighting, decorate trees and bake cookies.

“All ages participate,” Schluchter said.

A 10-month-old son of church members will be one of the two infants playing Baby Jesus this year. Children as young as 2 or 3 take the roles of the smallest angels. Shepherds and wise men include church members in their 70s and 80s.

Teenagers Jessica Atkins and Kayla Pate will take turns portraying Mary and the lead angel this year.

“We've been waiting for this moment since pixie wings,” said Jessica, a high school freshman who first portrayed one of the smallest angels when she was 5 years old.

She progressed to portraying a medium-sized angel and a shepherd.

“It's really fun,” she said. “It's once a year and one of my favorite things at Trinity.”

Church member Bonnie Petersen, who handles the costuming, said the Nativity gives her an opportunity to get to know the young people in the church better.

“It's very satisfying,” she said. “I took one year off and I really missed it. I went back the next year.”

Normally busy helping to put on the event, Petersen said when she took time out to watch a performance, tears came to her eyes.

“It's nice to get away from the hustle and bustle of shopping and see what the real reason for Christmas is,” she said.

Before the performances, those involved in putting on the Nativity hold hands while the Rev. Wende West, the church's pastor, prays. People call ahead to find out when the Nativity will be and plan holiday parties around it, West said.

A few people who don't belong to the church have participated in the Nativity after seeing it previous years and two families have started attending the church partly because of the event, West said.

“It's an outreach of sorts,” she said. “It's a gift to the community.”

If you go

<p><b>What:</b> Live Nativity</p>

<p><b>When:</b> 6 and 7 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 11, and 5 and 6 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 12</p>

<p><b>Where: </b>Trinity Lutheran Church, Curtis Avenue and Warrenville Road, Warrenville</p>

<p><b>Cost: </b>Free</p>

<p><b>Info: </b>(630) 393-9104 or tlcwarrenville.org</p>