An edition of the Littleton Independent
WEEK OF DECEMBER 19, 2024
VOLUME 24 | ISSUE 3
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Finding tradition in a pickle A popular holiday tradition involves hanging a pickle ornament on the Christmas tree for a family member to find.
Local historian speaks on origin of holiday ornament BY HALEY LENA HLENA@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM
Passed on from one generation to another, meaningful and fun holiday traditions are part of every family’s celebrations. But sometimes, there are traditions that just can’t be fully explained. The Christmas pickle tradition has been part of many families across the country for generations. However, with numerous theories about its beginnings circulating the internet, the origins of the tradition remain unclear. Wherever the tradition sparked, one
thing is certain: hanging a pickle ornament on the family Christmas tree has a history of bringing people together during the holiday season. “It’s a way for us to find some community in fun ways,” said Dr. Kim Kilmek, a history professor at Metropolitan State University of Denver. “And finding it in a pickle — it just brings up a light heartedness to the season and to the darker time of the year.” Whether the pickle ornament is the first or last ornament placed on the Christmas tree, the tradition of the Christmas pickle involves having children find the ornament on Christmas morning. Once found, how people celebrate the pickle differs from family to family. Often, the one who finds the pickle gets to open the first gift on Christmas. Another is that the person who finds the
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pickle receives an extra gift or is said to have good luck for the upcoming year. While the reason behind why the pickle is searched for varies, some say it’s a way to encourage children to appreciate the ornaments hung on the tree rather than rushing to see what St. Nicholas had brought them. Where did it come from?
It’s commonly believed that the Christmas pickle is a German tradition. But because it is a mystery as to where it actually originated, some historians are led to believe that it is a German-American or possibly an Eastern European-American tradition. Klimek has been teaching history courses in Denver for nearly 20 years —
How voters changed county’s new budget 2025 Arapahoe plan includes extra property tax revenue BY NINA JOSS NJOSS@COLORADOCOMMUITYMEDIA.COM
The Arapahoe County commissioners have approved a $570 million budget for 2025. The approval marks the end of a long year, during which the county commissioners feared they would have to make significant cuts to services in 2025 due to budgetary shortfalls. Instead, they celebrated a voter-approved tax revenue increase, which will bring in enough funding to deem the cuts unnecessary. Many of the county’s expenditures next year will be supported by extra property tax revenue made possible by the passage of Ballot Measure 1A, which eliminated the revenue cap set by the Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights (TABOR). Because voters approved this measure in the November election, the county expects to see a revenue boost of more than 25% in its 2025 general fund, compared to its 2024 general fund, according to a Dec. 10 staff presentation to the county commissioners. For residents’ wallets, this means more property tax dollars will go to county services next year. The extra revenue will support programs the county would have otherwise had to significantly reduce or cut, including its Aid to Agencies grant program, which provides grant funding to local nonprofits. The county’s property tax rate in 2025 will be about $15.86 per $1,000 of assessed property value, which would be about $39 per month on a home valued at $500,000, county budget division manager Jessica Savko said. That’s compared to about $11.21 per $1,000 of assessed property value in 2024, which came out to about $32 per month for a property valued at $500,000. SEE BUDGET, P6
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