In the good old days, 1940s, 1950s, 1960s, there were at least three major Christmas programs in Maple Hill. The Maple Hill Grade and High School presented Christmas Programs, the Maple Hill Community Congregational Church had Christmas Programs and finally the Maple Hill Community Christmas Program at the American Legion Hall.

I started to school in 1950, and I think I participated in all three from that time until I moved away from Maple Hill in 1978. I have a few pictures of the programs, which I’ll use but I’d ask any and all of you that have photos to also share them with us on this Facebook page.

I remember spending quite a lot of time on these programs. At Maple Hill Grade School and High School, we had Miss Inez Tiffany, Mrs. Alida Moore, Mr. Charles Evans and other music teachers that would spend weeks preparing each of the classes and groups. After 1953, when the new brick grade school and auditorium were built, the school programs were held in the auditorium. Before that, the programs were smaller affairs held in the classrooms in the old, two-story frame grade school building. The high school had a nice gym and a large stage on which most of the programs were held. I remember spending a lot more time getting these programs ready during the two weeks prior, so we children were glad to participate since it meant we didn’t have nearly so much school work.

In my earliest memories, there were two people who shared the superintendency of the Maple Hill Community Congregational Church Sunday School. They were Mrs. Myrtle Beach and Mrs. Charlotte Imthurn. These ladies and the teachers would spend several Sunday’s prior to the program rehearsing little skits, memory Bible verses and musical numbers. The programs were usually held in the evening. Some of the men in the church would go out into the surrounding pastures and cut a large western red cedar tree which was brought into the front of the church and decorated. I remember there being treats following the program. In earlier years the treats were tied to the tree in little brown paper bags with red ribbons. In later years, they were brought into the Sanctuary in big bushel baskets—probably from the Ballinger or Mote general stores.

The choir would also prepare a special program or a contata. During my years at Maple Hill Congregational Church, the church and choir organist was Mrs. Lois Hammarlund. Lois had a beautiful soprano voice and had studied music at McPherson College, McPherson, Kansas. I think there were programs every year. Sometimes they were presented during the regular worship service and at other times there would be special Christmas Programs in the evening, usually Sunday evening. Sometimes there were Christmas Eve services but they were usually in the early evening, 7:00pm or 8:00pm. When I was in high school, groups of us would go to St. Marys College for the Christmas Eve Service in their beautiful chapel. The chapel was destroyed by fire and was never rebuilt.

The Maple Hill Community Christmas Program was, so far as I recall, always held in the American Legion Hall which was located on the west side of Main Street in the middle of the block. It was destroyed and demolished by an ice storm in 2002 but stook in the vacant lot between Puffy’s Steak House and Stockgrower’s State Bank.

The Legion Hall had a large auditorium and stage at the front of the building. I’m estimating but it probably seated 150 people if it was filled. The stage at the front was probably 20’x40′ and had a large upright piano. Children of the community presented various talent acts by preparing little skits, singing Christmas songs, and reciting poems and other writings. It was a grand occasion climaxed by the arrival of Santa Claus who always brought more treats for the children attending. I’m sure I personally participated in the programs from the time I was four or five years old until I left Maple Hill in 1978. During the late 1960s, Mary Sue Kitt and I had a youth choir at the Maple Hill Community Congregational Church that performed both in the church program and at the community program. Mary Sue was an excellent pianist.

Although these were unsophisticated, home town programs, they were met with a great deal of excitement over the years.

I’m hopeful that if you have memories or photographs highlighting your participation in any of these programs, you will post them on this Facebook page. I’m sure our more than 200 readers would enjoy hearing and seeing them.

Photo 1 – The 1953 Grade and High School Christmas Program presented on the Maple Hill High School stage.

Photo 2 – The 1952 Maple Hill Community Congregational Church Choir with Mrs. Lois (Howard) Hammarlund pianist and choir director.

Photo 3 – This is a photo of a Christmas Program given at the Maple Hill Community Congregational Church in about 1935 or 1936. I’m dating at that time because my mother, Lucille (Corbin) Clark is the tall girl with burnette hair standing at the right of the back row. She was born in 1921 and looks to be 14 or 15 years old.

Photo 2 and 3 are taken from the 1975 Centennial History of the Maple Hill Community Congregational Church.