From Deseret News archives:

Salt Lake City comes aglow

Thousands pack downtown to usher in holiday season

Published: Saturday, Nov. 29, 2008 12:54 a.m. MST
 |  E-MAIL | PRINT | FONT + - 
With a comfortable chill in the air, downtown Salt Lake City came alive Friday night.

Thousands gathered at the Gallivan Center, Temple Square and The Gateway with hot chocolate and hand-warmers to welcome the spirit of the holiday season.

Musical artists including Kurt Bestor and Jon Schmidt set the tone with familiar melodies, and the holiday theme settled at dusk when the city began to glow in the colors of the season.

With the flick of a few switches, hundreds of thousands of bulbs burst into a kaleidoscope of color that led the city into the holidays.

"This is my first time seeing the lights," said Ana Teixeira, a Salt Lake resident, as she toured Temple Square with her parents. "You can see the temple and the Christmas spirit together here."

Every year, Teixeira said, she and her family begin the season by reading scriptures to remember why Christmas is celebrated. Throughout the month of December, Teixeira said, her family will construct a Nativity scene, collecting figures and traditional aspects of the set from nature to understand the significance of each piece. The set is completed on Christmas when the baby Jesus is placed in the manger. The family brought the custom from their native Portugal.

Story continues below
While the traditions that surround Christmas are significant to Teixeira and her family, she said that the essence of the season is rooted firmly in service and family. Those, Teixeira said are what bring happiness and joy.

Jennifer Doyle, Provo, said that her mother-in-law only asked that her family give her written notes describing situations in which they had helped another. Doyle said her mother-in-law most likely asked for the stories instead of little knickknacks because she wanted to know the good her family had passed to others.

"You can't help but worry for people with the way things have been," Doyle said. "I only want my kids to be grateful for the things they do have and for me to be helpful to others in my personal life."

And with the economic situation forcing more and more people to lean on their neighbors for support, there has never been a greater need for compassion and service, Bestor said after his show at the Gallivan Center Friday.

"This year may be one of the most memorable Christmases we have had in a long time," Bestor said. "The current conditions have forced us to dig into our hearts instead of our wallets."

Recent comments

This was such a nice place to post about the lights on Temple Square...

Re: Very Nice. | Nov. 29, 2008 at 11:00 p.m.

I am enjoying the nice comments about the true meaning of Christmas,...

Very Nice | Nov. 29, 2008 at 10:34 p.m.

@Just Me, and All.
And a Merry Christmas you as well. This is the...

Observer | Nov. 29, 2008 at 9:32 p.m.

Image

Temple Square is aglow with holiday lights. The switch was turned on Friday, marking the beginning of the Christmas season.

previousnext

Latest comments

A New York Giant made similar comments about the Dallas Cowboys recently. I...

Y.'s Tavernari looking for right role

Grendel | 3:34 p.m. Dec. 8, 2009 wrote: "JT is probably the greatest...

Letters: Professors and Beck

@Redshirt Re: Bill Gates/LHM — hilarious. I knew from the moment I...

Cougars in better mood about bowl

Reading these comments makes me wish I received my degree at Steven's Henegar...

Okay, here's the dealio... Any high profile, highly charged competition...

Not a lot of work is put into finding missing Utah adults (remember Lark...

Charter school laws among best

Despite the opposition from teacher's unions, the Utah State Education board...

'Uncharted 2' tops turbulent year

So many of the Wii games are movie or TV show tie ins and are really pretty...

Cougars in better mood about bowl

For all of you accusing me of being a Ute fan, I am not. I am a BYU...

Just because someone doesnt have a good house life, isn't an excuse to hurt...

Advertisements