STORIES OF THE SEASON Continued from Page 7
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Bill McGuire
eading was a priority in Bill McGuire’s house, thanks to his parents who were in the newspaper business. The CEO of WNC’s Child Abuse Prevention Services has fond memories of reading at Christmastime. “I well remember ‘The Night Before Christmas’ and later ‘The Gift of the Magi’ by O Henry,” McGuire recalls. “My mother would always put an old copy of ‘A Christmas Carol’ by Charles Dickens by the fireplace. On the inner cover was an inscription from one relative to another dating to 1905.” In the 1970s, McGuire’s sons gave him a Hallmark book of Christmas Classics. “I put it on the mantel every year, and we read ‘Christmas is Here’ by Washington Irving, ‘Is There a Santa Claus,’ ‘Silent Night,’ and ‘I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day’ by Longfellow,” he says. Allison Jordan SPECIAL TO WNC PARENT
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n college, local actor Tom Chalmers worked at a children’s bookstore in New York City and received an autographed copy of “The Polar Express” that included a silver bell like the one featured in the story. “We started the tradition of reading that book on Christmas Eve every year with my mom,” Chalmers relates. “When my brothers began having children, we would read the story to them and then ring the bell at the end. When my mother passed away a few years ago, many special items were passed on, including the copy of ‘The Polar Express’ to my younger brother who will have it on the mantel again this year.”
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or Allison Jordan, executive director of Children First, reading Christmas stories involved the entire family. “My mother, father, and my grandmother all read to me,” Jordan says. “I remember ‘The Night Before Christmas,’ ‘Santa Mouse’ and ‘Mr. Willoughby’s Christmas,’ which was my favorite.” As an adult, Jordan recorded herself reading “The Night Before Christmas” for her nieces who live three hours away so they could hear her read anytime.