St. Mary's kicks off the Christmas spirit

Who needs Black Friday for Christmas shopping when you have the Christmas Bazaar on Longboat Key instead? 

From 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Nov. 16 at St. Mary Star of the Sea Church (4280 GMD), the Father Pick Hall will be a winter wonderland. For now, it’s still under construction. Decorated and bare Christmas trees stand near each other and wreaths hang on a pinboard. The pine products are so dense that one half of the hall looks like a forest. Piles of items to be priced and arranged cover tables and fill boxes, and the cheerful “elves” of the Women’s Guild try to create a few more items out of what they have. 

“It’s getting to be crunch time, so we’re busy,” co-chair Carol Fischbein said. 

Fischbein, along with fellow co-chairs Jane Vorel, Clara McGonigle and Andy Youngs, have been putting the annual Women’s Guild event together since June, creating ornaments and decorating trees to be sold. Vorel taught women how to make angels out of a bell and some ribbon.

“We’re like Pinterest city here,” Mary Lou Ivaska said. 

 It can be hard to find Christmas items in the middle of summer, but the Women’s Guild often gets donations from members of the community to help spur their creations, McGonigle said. 

Other than trees, wreaths and ornaments, there will be nuts, fruit, chocolate, jewelry, knit and crochet baby blankets, bears, placemats and an array of other holiday items to be sold. All the money from the sale will go to various charities. For   information, call 383-1255.