EUREKA — Just seven years ago, Peggy Dimick didn't know what the word "creche" meant.

Today, the Eureka great-grandmother knows it's a French word used as a universal term to describe the Nativity, or scene at Christ's birth.

But when her daughter called from Oregon to ask her mother's help with setting up a creche display at her church, Dimick drew a blank.

"I asked her, 'What is (a creche)?' " Dimick now recalls with a chuckle. "She said, 'It's a nativity set.' I said, 'Well, I've never heard it called that, but OK.' "

With that Dimick flew to Oregon and spent several weeks setting up cr�ches with her daughter. The experience piqued her interest as an owner of several nativity sets and gave her an idea.

So when she got back to Utah, she asked leaders of the LDS Church's Goshen Stake if they'd be interested in sponsoring a creche exhibit.

Their response was enthusiastic, though they expressed doubt that their rural community could rally together more than 50 nativity sets.

But by the exhibit's opening night, Dimick had found more than 280 creches to put on display.

And the numbers continue to grow as residents of the towns of Eureka, Elberta and Goshen add to their personal collections. This year, Dimick expects to showcase more than 600 creches.

"Lots of visitors say, 'Never did we expect anything of this excellence to happen in a town this small.' " Dimick said. "Usually you don't have those kind of resources. But we do."

Today, Dimick is the proud owner of more than 50 creches from places like Mexico, Indonesia, Ecuador, Israel and Nigeria.

Some she's purchased during her own travels and others she's received as gifts from friends who know about the annual exhibit.

Each has its own story and reflects the culture's perspective on Christ's birth.

"I have one that a friend brought back for me from Chile that's very simple and very plain," Dimick said. "It's clay and very primitive. I have one from Mexico that is also very primitive, but it has all the beautiful colors of Mexico."

But Dimick isn't the only one with lots of nativity sets.

Each year, the exhibit showcases a creche collection from someone in the Goshen LDS stake. This year, the stake will display Laureen Gabbitas' collection of more than 100 nativity sets from around the globe.

The exhibit divides the other creches into themes. There is a Native American room, a South American room and a "mother and child" room.

In addition to the creches, there will also be live nativities, musical programs and a humanitarian tree.