creche
herald
for all who love, own or collect a creche Vol. 1, No. 1
A Creche Signifies a New Beginning
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s a child I attended the summer religious school run by our local church. When I was in about third grade, our craft project was making plaster molds of Mary, Joseph and the Infant Jesus. With a lot of help, we kids mixed and poured, and a few days later labored over painting the small statues. The figures I took home were the beginnings of our family's creche. That Christmas, we added shepherds with lambs, kings and camels, stable animals and angels. If my parents noticed these finely detailed Italian figures were grander than my summer school contributions, they never mentioned it. At Christmas, each child at home had a task in the tree decorating. My sisters hung the Christmas balls, my brother put on the tinsel--strand by strand-and I was in charge of arranging the creche. I took great pride in my role. First I rummaged through the bookcases finding just the right sized books. Then the books were arranged in varying stacks around the base of the tree. Lastly, I covered the whole with shimmering brown flecked "mountain paper," molding the covering to the irregular stacks of books; a "cave" was in the foreground. Shepherds and magi were carefully posed on mountainsides and near the Baby Jesus. Over the manger scene a heralding angel "flew," dangling by string on an overhanging branch. My older sister now has the family creche and when I married, I gathered another. Each creche represents a beginning, a new time in my life. For some of our readers, memories of childhood and arrangement of the family creche evoke feelings of nostalgia not too dissimilar from mine. At the same time, the joys of collecting a new creche or adding just the right new piece creates continuing joy and excitement. ur hope is that the creche herald, like the creche we all love, will represent a new beginning in your life, a new pleasure in the sharing of the creche experience. Rita B. Bocher, Publisher
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Spring 1997
International Creche Competition Opens
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r. George F. Drake, President of the International Creche Festival Association (ICFA) in Bellingham, Washington, has announced the fifth annual creche competition. "International interest in this contest is extremely high," said Drake, " with local competitions in regions as diverse as the United States, Africa, South America, and Europe." Entries are due in Bellingham November 1. Works may be handcrafted three dimensional or two dimensional renditions, such as tapestries or paintings. They must include the figures of Mary, Joseph and the infant Jesus, and as many other figures as the artist wishes. Individual figures may not exceed 15 inches (38 cm) high. Two dimensional works may not exceed 24 inches by 48 inches (61 cm x 122 cm). There is no entry fee to participants. Pieces may be for sale; those not sold are returned to the artist. All entrants will receive a printed certificate of participation.
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First prize in the contest is $1000; second prize is $500, and third prize is $300. Travel awards of a 10-day all-expense trip to Bellingham also are given. Sometimes, additional recognition results. In 1994, the first place winner from Slovakia, Peter Palka, saw his winning creation portrayed on Slovakia's Christmas stamp. "This contest is just one way of preserving folk art and generating a wider understanding and appreciation of world cultures," said Drake. By the year 2000, ICF A hopes to have the largest display of nativity scenes anywhere in the world. Further information may be obtained by contacting ICFA at 1421 Cornwall Ave #B Bellingham, WA 98225 Tel: 360-734-9757; Fax 360-734-9830 E-mail: gdrake@creche.org