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2025 FAITH & FAMILY FOR THE HOLIDAYS
THE SUMTER ITEM
Faith & Family for the Holidays
Kid-friendly holiday traditions Tradition is a big part of the holiday season. Families lean into tradition each December, and perhaps no people participate in holiday customs with more enthusiasm than children. Whether it’s decorating the family Christmas tree or baking cookies for Santa on Christmas Eve, children look forward to various holiday season traditions once the calendar turns from November to December. Parents of young children can make this unique time of year even more special by engaging in various kid-friendly traditions that are sure to produce lots of fun
and even more lasting memories. • Advent calendars: The precise origins of Advent calendars are unknown, but historians believe the tradition was started by German Lutherans in the nineteenth century. More than a century later, roughly 50 million Advent calendars are sold across the globe each year, according to Marketplace.org. Advent is a nearly monthlong period of preparation for the celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ on December 25. Each day during Advent, children open a flap, window or door and find a small gift, poem, candy, or another item
that adds to the excitement of the season. • Matching pajamas: Though the tradition of wearing matching holiday pajamas may not have the same lengthy history as Advent calendars, it’s nonetheless a very fun custom for families. Parents can decide how frequently their families dress up in matching pajamas at bedtime during the holiday season, but doing so on Christmas Eve is a popular way to make a fun day even more special. Another idea is to host weekly holiday movie nights during the season, which presents a perfect opportunity to don matching PJs.
• Holiday lights tour: Holiday lighting displays have come a long way in recent decades. Whereas it might once have been popular to string a few strands of lights around the exterior of a house, many holiday celebrants now beckon their inner Clark Griswold and turn their properties into areas with enough illumination to land a small plane. Holiday inflatables for the yard add to the awe of such displays. Kids tend to be especially fond of these types of displays, so parents can make a point to pick a night each holiday season to go on a tour of their neighborhoods and towns to see this year’s
offerings. • Christmas dance party: Sweets are another staple of the holiday season, and what better way for kids to burn off some of that extra sugar than to dance it away to a holiday music playlist curated by Mom and Dad? Cue up some holiday classics but let kids dance to a few of their own favorites as well. Holiday traditions help to make the season a special time of year. Families can embrace various kid-friendly traditions to ensure children have even more fun this December.
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2025 FAITH & FAMILY FOR THE HOLIDAYS
THE SUMTER ITEM
Love, forgiveness and unity for the holidays
DR. JAMES BLASSINGAME REVEREND MT. ZION MISSIONARY BAPTIST CHURCH
As we step once again into the holiday season, my heart leans toward each of you with deep love and concern. This year has stretched us, challenged us and tested the ties that bind us all together. In the midst of difficulty, God’s light still shines — brighter than any darkness we have or will face. The holidays remind
us not only of a holy birth, but also of a holy invitation: an invitation to love deeper, forgive freely and walk together in unity. In the Gospel of Luke 2:10–11, the angel declares, “Fear not … for unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, which is Christ the Lord.” That simple message still transforms lives to this very day. Fear not — because hope has come. Fear not — because God is still with us. Fear not — because the Savior entered the world to bring peace, healing and a new beginning. Christmas is a season of love. Love is the heartbeat of Christmas. Not the kind wrapped in pretty paper but the kind that shows up when it’s hard. The kind that holds a neighbor’s
hand, checks on our elders, encourages our youth and makes sure no one feels forgotten. Let this season remind us that love is our greatest resource — and our greatest responsibility. Christmas is a season to forgive. Forgiveness is not about enabling someone to get away with what they did, but it’s about setting your own soul free. Many of us walk into the holidays carrying burdens from the year. But Christmas is God’s way of saying, “You don’t have to carry that anymore.” Release the grudges. Release the regrets. Release the anger. Make room for Christ’s peace to rest in your heart. A season for unity The Sumter community has weathered storms — seen disagreements, divisions
and disappointments. But there is no challenge that love and unity cannot overcome. We are stronger together. We are better together. And we rise together, not as strangers or rivals, but as brothers and sisters in this county we all call home. A call to reach out In a world full of noise and negativity, we each carry the power to make a difference. Call someone you haven’t spoken to. Check on a family that’s struggling. Encourage a young man or young woman trying to find their way. Give food, give warmth, give a listening ear — give whatever God has blessed you to give. A simple act of kindness can turn someone’s entire life around.
A hope for 2026 As we prepare to step into a new year, I speak this over Sumter County with full confidence and bold faith: 2026 can be better, stronger and more united — if we enter it with love, forgiveness and hope. Let us walk into the new year expecting God to move, expecting families to heal, expecting opportunities to grow and expecting our community to rise into its full potential. My prayer is that this holiday season warms your heart, strengthens your spirit and reminds you that God is still in control. May the peace of Christ guide us, the love of Christ surround us and the unity of Christ hold us together. Happy holidays, Sumter County.
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Plaza is a Christ Centered Family
We see ourselves as a people who have been bought with the blood of Christ and placed by Him in Plaza congregation. We exist as a congregation for three reasons. First, we are to reach out into our community and invite others to be in a relationship with Christ. Second, we are to worship our God who is worthy of love and commitment. In doing this we build each other (Christ’s disciples) up in the holy faith. Third, we also exist to express Christ’s benevolence toward those who have various needs. We are an undenominational fellowship with no earthly headquarters. Christ said, “He would build His church” (Mt. 16:18). He did that in the first century and we believe that same church continues to exist. In Romans 16:16 we find the phrase, “churches of Christ” and this is where we get our name.
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2025 FAITH & FAMILY FOR THE HOLIDAYS
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SATURDAY - TUESDAY, DEC. 13-16, 2025 |
The true meaning of Christmas over the manger. So, Dr. Ferguson asked with a smile, “Guarding the manger?” The officer’s answer was surprising. “Well, yes. You see, last year the baby Jesus was stolen!” This story immediately made me think, “Yes, the baby Jesus has in many ways been stolen.” BRIAN PEAKE Has the true meanMINISTER ing of Christmas been MAYESVILLE ASSOCIATED REFORMED PRESBYTERIAN stolen? Our culture is quick to tell us the true CHURCH meaning of ChristDr. Sinclair Fergumas: “Family, giving, son, retired minister children …” That’s of First Presbyterian what Christmas is all Church in Columabout. Someone said bia, in his wonderful Christmas is what you Christmas book called make it. People say “Child in the Manger: that Christmas is not The True Meaning Christmas if they miss of Christmas,” tells seeing “Charlie Brown a story about an inChristmas” or “It’s a cident that happened Wonderful Life.” one night as he was Now, don’t hear walking downtown in me wrong. All these Glasgow, Scotland, to attend a Christmas Eve things contribute to the joyful experiences service at the church of the season. In fact, where he became a they are some of my Christian and later personal favorites. But served as a minister. for some, Christmas People would gather doesn’t bring a joyful there to soak in the and wonderful time of sights and sounds of year. For some, it is a Christmas. There was also a life-sized manger heartbreakingly sad and lonely time. Loved scene in the square. ones have passed away. One year, as Dr. FerFamily squabbles have guson walked by, he not been healed, and noticed two police officers standing guard Christmas brings lots
of sadness and tears. Christmas can be a wonderful time of year for some and a very difficult time of year for others. So, what is the answer to the real meaning of Christmas? Many nominal Christians say they believe in Jesus, but what do they mean? If they believe Jesus is just one way of salvation among many other ways or Jesus is not the Messiah or Jesus is just a very good man who set a wonderful example for us to follow, then that Jesus is a false savior. Those versions of Jesus cannot save. According to a recent survey, 52% of all respondents said that Jesus was a great teacher but not God. Even more shocking, 30% of professing Christians had the same response, “Jesus was a great teacher but not God.” Any Jesus that is not the divine God-Man is a dreadful savior and cannot save. Philippians 2:5 -11 reads: “Having this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who though being in the very form of God did
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not consider equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, He humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Therefore, God has highly exalted Him and bestowed upon Him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow in heaven, and on earth, and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father.” The only Jesus that saves is the Christ, the God-Man of the scriptures. Chuck Swindoll summed it up well when he said, “God served as midwife and safely delivered His son precisely as He had promised. As the mother and her husband stared, these simple folks from Galilee were the first to see God’s human face. As God in understated majesty kept His word.”
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Advent calendars are a common sight in many households each December, and some historians believe this unique tradition can be traced to a creative nineteenth century German housewife. Though Britannica notes the precise origins of Advent calendars are still debated, one theory behind the popular tradition suggests a woman in Munich created the Advent calendar as a way for her young and impatient yet excited son to count down the days to December 25. Though details are fuzzy and difficult if not impossible to confirm, this legends suggests the crafty German mother filled 24 different small boxes with a baked treat, allowing her son to open one each day during Advent, the nearly monthlong period of preparation for Christmas that begins on the fourth Sunday before the holiday and ends by Christmas Eve. While this origin story connects Advent calendars with Christianity, and many Christians still make it part of their Christmas celebrations, many modern people with no such affiliation also incorporate the calendars into their holiday season routines.
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2025 FAITH & FAMILY FOR THE HOLIDAYS
THE SUMTER ITEM
Good news
KEVIN BUYNAK GROUPS PASTOR ALICE DRIVE BAPTIST CHURCH A couple of my favorite verses in Scripture are Luke 2:10-11, “But the angel said to them, ‘Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy for all the people. 11 Today in the town of David, a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord.’” When I think about the meaning of good news and great joy, I’m reminded of a moment from my childhood that still impacts me today. It happened in
elementary school, during one of those infamous 100-problem multiplication tests. If you’ve ever helped a child or grandchild prepare for one of these, you know exactly what I’m talking about: tiny boxes, tiny numbers and a whole lot of pressure. The day before the test, our teacher gave us a practice sheet. “Every one of these problems will be on your test tomorrow,” she promised. To my young mind, that was the best news imaginable. I took that sheet home and went to work. I filled in every problem, then memorized every answer — one through one hundred — in perfect order. By bedtime, I could recite them forward, backward or out loud to anyone who happened to walk by. I knew the answers. I was ready.
Ginger cookies fit right in during holiday baking sessions
The next day, the test hit my desk, and I instantly went into machine mode. I wrote down the answers exactly as I had memorized them. I finished first, turned in my paper proudly and walked out of class with the unshakable confidence of someone who just knew they had just aced the test! That is why the next morning was such a shock. When the teacher handed back our papers, mine was covered in red ink — with a giant “44” written at the top. The problems on the test were the same ones I had memorized, but on test day, most of them were in a different order. I had been so sure I knew every answer, but I hadn’t actually paid attention to the questions. What happened next, though, is what I remember most. My teacher quietly pulled
me aside. “I think you know how to multiply better than this,” she said gently. Then she handed me a fresh test and encouraged me to take my time. I took it slowly and thoughtfully and ended with a much better score. I deserved that failing grade. I had earned every red mark on the page. But instead of leaving me there, my teacher offered me another chance, a new beginning I hadn’t worked for and didn’t deserve. That is grace! That’s exactly what Luke 2 is all about. When the angel appeared to those shepherds in the night sky, he wasn’t bringing a list of spiritual problems to fix or a test to pass. He was bringing good news, the kind that brings great joy because it doesn’t depend on our performance. “Today in the town of David,”
he said, “a Savior has been born to you.” Not a scorekeeper. A Savior. Jesus didn’t come because we had life figured out. He came because we didn’t. He came because we mixed up the order, missed the point, got the answers wrong and couldn’t fix them on our own. He came to offer us what we could never earn — a fresh start, a clean page and a grace bigger than all our mistakes. Just like my teacher that day, God steps into our mess not to condemn but to redeem. He sees where we’ve fallen short, and instead of handing us back a failing grade, He gives us the gift of His Son. That is the good news. That is great joy. That is the true reason to celebrate this Christmas!
Holiday baking sessions are a beloved tradition in many households. A family baking day during the holiday season is a great activity that appeals to loved ones of all ages, making a day spent in the kitchen an ideal way to bring multiple generations together under one roof. There’s no shortage of options when baking together as a family, but no treat embodies this season of baking more than cookies. Whether you’re baking cookies for Santa Claus, bringing them along to a holiday party or simply whipping them up for some extra energy when decorating the tree, these “Ginger Cookies” from Lines+Angles are sure to please this December.
Ginger Cookies Makes 48 cookies
and egg together until light and fluffy. Stir in all remaining ingredients, except granulated sugar. 3. Shape dough by rounded teaspoonfuls into balls. Dip tops into granulated sugar and place balls, sugar side up, on prepared baking sheet, about 3 inches apart. 4. Bake 10 to 12 minutes or until just set. Remove from cookie sheet immediately to wire rack to cool. Serve. Tip: Before measuring molasses, spray the measuring cup with cooking spray; the molasses won’t stick to the sides of the cup.
1 cup packed brown sugar 3⁄4 cup shortening 1⁄4 cup molasses 1large egg 21⁄4 cups un bleached all-pur pose flour 1⁄2 teaspoon ground cloves 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon 1 teaspoon ginger 2 teaspoons bak ing soda 1⁄4 teaspoon salt Granulated sugar, for rolling 1. Preheat oven to 375 F. Lightly grease baking sheet with nonstick cooking spray. 2. In a large bowl, using an electric mixer on medium speed, beat brown sugar, shortening, molasses,
Come experience hope, worship, and the joy of Christmas with us! CELEBRATE CHRISTMAS AT ALICE DRIVE BAPTIST CHURCH!
Christmas
EV E
Join us as we welcome our new Lead Pastor, Corey Watson, who will be preaching all Christmas Eve services. Service Times:
• December 23 – 6:30 PM (Loring Mill Campus)
• December 24 – 4:30 PM & 6:30 PM (Loring Mill Campus) • December 24 – 6:30 PM (All Campuses)
AT ALICE DRIVE BAPTIST CHURCH 1305 Loring Mill Rd. Sumter, SC 29150
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2025 FAITH & FAMILY FOR THE HOLIDAYS
SATURDAY - TUESDAY, DEC. 13-16, 2025 |
Mary’s song of praise: Luke 1:46-55
RON DAVIS PASTOR SUMTER BIBLE CHURCH Mary, the mother of Jesus, received some news one day that would change her life. The angel Gabriel said to her, “The Lord is with thee” (Luke 1:28); and she would definitely need this assurance for the news he was sent to give her. The angel told her that she would conceive and give birth to a son. She was a young, pure teenager who had never had physical relations with a man. “How shall this be seeing I know not a man?” she asked (Luke 1:34). Though she did not fully understand, she believed the message and wanted God to be glorified through her life. In her “Song of Praise” that we read in the first chapter of Luke’s gospel account, we see seven things
that she magnified in addition to magnifying the Lord. Please refer to this chapter as you read below for greater understanding. First, Mary magnified the Lord (46). The word translated “magnify” is the Greek word megalunei, which means “to make great.” This is done like a telescope, which brings something large and distant into clear view. It is not magnified like a microscope, which enlarges something small. Mary wanted her life and her response to the news to bring God closer for others to see. She said, “My soul doth magnify the Lord.” This means she wanted her affections and personality (all the impulses that control the body) to glorify God. Jesus prayed in John 17:5 that God would glorify Him. Mary never prayed that God would glorify her. She wanted God to be glorified, and Jesus is God. One name attributed to Jesus is Emmanuel, which means “God with us.” May He be magnified! Mary magnified her joy (47). She said, “My spirit hath rejoiced in God.” We cannot
magnify the Lord for what He is doing until we rejoice over it. She referred to God in this verse as her Savior because Mary needed to be saved from sin, too. No one can sing, rejoice and magnify God until God is his Savior. Mary magnified her humility (48). Her reference to her “low estate” showed her proper self-esteem. Mary did not consider herself as a “mediator” between God and man. Jesus is the only Mediator between God and man. At the first miracle Jesus performed, Mary said to the disciples, “Whatsoever he says, do.” When she said all generations would call her blessed, it was not because of her own worth but because of God’s grace. Blessedness comes after “believing” (1:45). The phrase “He hath regarded” (48) reflects her humility as what was pleasing to God and what was outstanding in His sight. God hates pride! The word “I” does not appear in Mary’s “Song of Praise.” She refers to herself as a “handmaid.” Charles Spurgeon said, “The higher a man is in grace, the lower he will be in his
own esteem.” She magnified God’s blessings to her (49). She was confessing that God had made her into something special. Bill Gaither’s song “Something Beautiful” comes to mind. “He made something beautiful of my life,” the song says. God’s greatness can do great things in you, for you and through you. She didn’t tell what she was doing for the world but what God was doing for her. She stated, “Holy is his name” and not “holy am I.” What the angel had told her in 1:35, she now experiences personally. She magnified God’s goodness to all (50). In verse 50, her praise switches to what God has done for others, not what He has done for her. It is the Lord’s mercy, not Mary’s. His mercy is available to all, but it is only upon all that fear Him. Only one woman could be the mother of Jesus, but everyone ever born can receive His mercy! She magnified the Lord’s power (51-52). With His extended arm, He gathers or scatters. Pride and humility - one brings destruction, and one
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brings honor. Everyone that is proud in heart is an abomination to the Lord (Proverbs 16:5). God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble (James 4:6). Humility puts you in a place where God can use you. She magnified the Lord’s provision (53). This was prophetic. He fed the poor physically and spiritually. Are you hungry? The measure of your hunger is the measure of God’s supply. Are you rich (feel self-sufficient)? You will miss all of God’s supply and go away empty. She magnified God’s faithfulness (54-55). He is the same today as He was for Mary, Jacob and Abraham. God chose them not because any of them deserved it but because He is a God of mercy and compassion. O magnify the LORD with me, and let us exalt his name together (Psalm 34:3). For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord (Luke 2:11).
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HOW TO CONTRIBUTE Donations can be mailed to: The Sumter Item P.O. Box 1677 Sumter, SC 29151 Dropoff donations: The Sumter Item is located at 36 W. Liberty St.
‘Katy’ Greenawalt
BY KEVIN HOWELL DIRECTOR, CRISIS RELIEF MINISTRY
Donate online
During a recent visit to the dentist, I patiently endured the scrapCashApp ing and plucking, but $SUMdonate the cold rinse sent me squirming in my chair. Zeffy - https://tinyurl. Is there anything that com/2densutv we are more sensitive to than cold tempera*This option is free for tures? Step outside on a nonprofits and donor night when the chill fee is optional catches your breath: “It’s really cold out!” Square - https:// For many of our square.link/u/Wvtclients, the fall and winter are dreaded 5yLTR seasons for them. For all the ways we comPayPal - https://tipensate for hot weathnyurl.com/bdekdsks er, keeping warm in the winter is far more What to include: difficult. Each year, The Item promotes a campaign of sharing, Names, including The Fireside Fund. For groups, should be many decades, resispelled completely. dents have contributed When making a doto The Fireside Fund nation in someone’s in order to help their honor, the names will neighbors in need stay warm during the winbe printed as given. ter. I wonder at times Checks should be what are the specific made out to Sumter reasons that people United Ministries. are motivated to give. Perhaps they are moDO YOU NEED tivated by their faith HEATING HELP? and compassion. Still some may respond Anyone in need of as- because of gratitude for their own blessings. sistance with heating For others, perhaps or heating utility costs the personal stories can call Sumter Unitfeatured during the ed Ministries at campaign propel their generosity. (803) 775-0757. All of the above reasons are genuine and meaningful, but if I could give you a phrase to stay with Zeffy
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you, it would be “if you could see the look.” If you could see the look of relief and gratitude when we provide vouchers for kerosene, propane, Dominion Energy and even making an electric account balance more manageable, it would be all the motivation that you need. I cannot imagine the fear of not having adequate heat in a home with families of young children. I cannot imagine the anxiety of a cold front moving into our area while seeing daylight around windows and doors because of disrepair or lack of insulation. I cannot imagine trying to heat my home with an oven with the door open because I do not have enough kerosene for a heater. What I can imagine is the look of relief. I have seen it on faces of clients time after time. Your contributions make this possible. From now until the end of March, Sumter United Ministries will interview and assist clients with heating needs. As we all embrace the toughest season ahead, may we think of those less fortunate. Thank you for your support. 2025-26 Fireside Fund honoree Each year, The Sumter Item chooses a mem-
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ber of the community who has passed away in the last year whose support, whether through work, advocacy, leadership, philanthropy or community activism, has made a positive impact. This year, The Item is dedicating the Fireside Fund to Katy Greenawalt, Sumter United Ministries’ founding director. According to previous reporting from The Sumter Item after her passing: “Born in Chattanooga, Tennessee, Greenawalt met her husband, retired Lt. Col. USAF Rodgers Kenyon Greenawalt, in the summer of 1965 in Maryland, and they were married in 1967. She was an active part of her community and served on the Sumter Housing Authority Board of Commissioners, was the director of Bethel Baptist preschool and kindergarten, and, of course, she was one of the driving forces behind the success of Sumter United Ministries. “... Greenawalt began as a volunteer, as many people do when a nonprofit is just starting out, and as she directed SUM, she set its groundwork. The ministry may stand without her physically in it today, but it will never truly be without her; she makes
up SUM’s foundation, and more than a trace of her is present in the now-decades-old practices that she first came up with.” She died on May 3 at the age of 77. “We are very grateful for The Sumter Item and The Fireside Fund for partnering with Sumter United Ministries again this year,” SUM Executive Director Mark Champagne said, who remembers Greenawalt as his mentor, according to The Item’s article on her this spring. “... Her steadfast leadership and remarkable creativity laid the foundation on which this ministry still stands. She built systems with excellence, served with compassion and believed fiercely in the potential of every person who walked through our doors. She would see the hope in them long before they saw it themselves. She loved people deeply and followed her Savior with unwavering devotion, leading this ministry through her faith and her heart. Her legacy continues to guide and strengthen Sumter United Ministries today and will always be fondly remembered - please give and keep Katy’s legacy going strong.”
YOUR IMPACT BY THE NUMBERS Total Since 1969: $1,824,463.74 Total Last Year: $27,427 As of March 30, 2025
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The value of showing up
MARK YODER LEAD PASTOR CHRIST COMMUNITY CHURCH
I love stories that come out now and then of wait staff at restaurants receiving those massive tips. There’s the Pizza Hut employee in Indiana who received a $10,000 tip on a simple lunch order (true story). Or the worker at another pizzeria who received, in place of a tip, an offer of splitting any potential winnings of a lottery ticket. She agreed, and the ticket ended up winning – her share was $3 million! (Yes, another true story, and was adapted into the movie “It Could Happen to You.”) These servers did nothing extraordinarily unusual. They just faithfully showed up where and when they were supposed to. It’s so similar to the story of Simeon in the birth narrative of Jesus. He gets only 11 verses of ink in the second chapter of Luke’s gospel. At some earlier point in his life, the Spirit of God had let him know he
wouldn’t pass away until he’d laid eyes on the Messiah. Not a small promise! God’s people had waited centuries for the Christ’s coming, and they waited … and waited … and waited. Simeon waited, too. Then this one day, led again by the Spirit, Simeon came yet one more time to the temple. It’s this day God made the path of Simeon cross with the path of Mary, Joseph and the days-old Jesus. The promise made to Simeon was kept, and he got to see face to face this child who would change the cosmos. I can’t help but think those eyes that saw the young Jesus got more than a little tearful. He knew what he was looking at! You know what Simeon did that was so remarkable? Me either. He just did what he regularly had done for who knows how long. Prior to that day, he had faithfully, regularly come to the temple, and then he had left to head back home with no great stories to tell. But that day was different! He saw God in the flesh as a baby. Just imagine what Simeon would have missed had he not made the mundane decision to go to the temple. It doesn’t seem like a monumental decision, does it? There are countless other meaningful ways in
which he could have spent his time. But unbeknownst to him, that day was different. He didn’t know it would be different, but it was. He could have missed it all, but he didn’t. He just showed up! There’s tremendous value in just being faithful and being where you’re supposed to be, when you’re supposed to be there, doing what you should do. You’ve likely experienced that as well, even if it’s not quite as powerful as Simeon’s encounter. It’s that tender conversation when you went and visited a friend in their time of loss. Or the way the Lord moved you when you showed up at the worship service just because it was what you do. Or the unusual joy you sensed when you folded your child’s laundry, yet once again, but this time it just felt different. Keep showing up. Do the regular. Be where you’re supposed to be, when you’re supposed to be there, doing what you’re supposed to be doing. Because whether it’s “in the temple” or on your friend’s front porch, or kneeling at your child’s bed, or going to pick up that friend who needs a ride, God may just turn this one normal act of service into a unique moment. He did for Simeon. He may do it for you, too.
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Tips when traveling with pets
Traveling with pets can be a rewarding experience that enables individuals to share new adventures with their companion animals. Bringing pets along on vacation has become quite popular. According to Top Dog Pet Travel, a central Florida agency specializing in pet-friendly bookings, there has been an uptick in people traveling with their pets since 2024. A report from the American Pet Products Association indicates 22 percent of both cat and dog owners reported taking their animals on at least three flights in 2024. Although traveling with pets can be fun and cuts down on costs for pet boarding or alternative care, it also requires careful planing to keep pets safe, comfortable and free from stress throughout the trip. These practical tips can make traveling with pets a smooth experience, whether one is traveling by car, plane or just off on a weekend getaway. • Plan ahead. Research any pet regulations and restrictions prior to traveling. Some hotels, airlines and rental properties have specific rules or fees for pets. Always confirm if companion animals are allowed, and determine if there are restrictions on size, breed or the number of pets. Every airline has different rules for in-cabin versus cargo travel for pets. International travel may require certain vaccinations or quarantine periods, so it pays to start planning well in advance. • Visit the vet. A checkup with the pet’s vet is a good step prior to any trip. The vet will make sure the animal is current on vaccinations and well enough to travel. Getting a copy of the pet’s medical records and vaccination schedule is helpful, as some airlines or destinations may require it. Also inquire about medication for motion sickness or anxiety, if necessary. • Bring familiar items. Animals like consistency and routine. Keeping familiar items nearby can help reduce anxiety in unfamiliar environments. Bring along food, bowls, leashes, and preferred toys or bedding. • Stick to routine. routine Give the pet time to adjust to the new surroundings and adhere to the same meal, walk and play schedules the animal is accustomed to at home. Regular feeding helps avoid stomach upset, as does bringing bottled water or water from home. • Pack some patience. patience Even the most well-behaved pet may act out a little when in unfamiliar territory. Also, it’s possible to encounter individuals who may not be as amenable to sharing surroundings with pets. Pets will take emotional cues from their owners, so projecting calm can be beneficial. Traveling with pets is becoming increasingly popular. Planning ahead and working with pet-friendly venues can ensure that everyone in the family enjoys some time away.
THE SUMTER ITEM
2025 FAITH & FAMILY FOR THE HOLIDAYS
SATURDAY - TUESDAY, DEC. 13-16, 2025 |
C9
Make the holidays colorful
Jesus is Better than Santa All Santa can offer is Ho Ho Ho Jesus offers health, help, and hope Santa says “You better not cry” Jesus says “Cast all your cares on me for I care for you” Santa’s little helpers make toys Jesus makes new life, mends wounded hearts, repairs broken bones, and builds mansions
A brief history of Christmas trees
Jesus is still the reason for the season
From Your Friends at
Dixie Products 1255 N. Lafayette • Sumter • 775-4391 8:30am - 5:00pm Monday - Friday
Towering evergreen trees adorned in lights and other trinkets are a focal point of the holiday season. Christmas trees are placed in prominent locations in homes, typically in front of a large picture window or in the corners of large entryways. These awe-inspiring trees beckon people to inspect all of the ornaments and often are the first thing people envision when thinking of holiday decor. The tradition of the Christmas tree is believed to have begun in Germany in the sixteenth century. However, the National Christmas Tree Association says there may be earlier references to Christmas trees in other parts of the world as well. The first written record of a decorated Christmas tree comes from Riga, Latvia, in 1510. Men of a local merchant’s guild decorated the tree with roses and then set fire to it. The rose was considered a symbol of the Virgin Mary. In the sixteenth century in Alsace, France, trees were sold in the marketplace and brought home and set up undecorated. Laws limited the size to “eight shoe lengths” or slightly more than four feet. Early German Christmas trees were adorned with apples, a holdover from earlier traditions when evergreen boughs hung with apples were used as props in miracle plays. These plays took place in churches on December 24, which was Adam & Eve’s Day in the early Christian calendar. Evergreens have long been symbolic of life during the cold months of winter, calling to mind the promise of spring to come. Various cultures, including early Christians, featured trees during winter solstice celebrations. Some historians believe Martin Luther, a Protestant reformer who might have been inspired by stars in the night, was responsible for adding lighted candles to the Christmas tree. The Christmas tree was introduced to the United States by German settlers in the 1800s. Soon after those settlers’ arrival, trees began to be sold commercially. President Franklin Pierce is credited with having the first Christmas tree at the White House. Today, Christmas trees are wildly popular, with the American Christmas Tree Association reporting that 94 percent of U.S. consumers plan to display one.
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C10 | SATURDAY - TUESDAY, DEC. 13-16, 2025
2025 FAITH & FAMILY FOR THE HOLIDAYS
THE SUMTER ITEM
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