Sharing Christmas village with customers

Cresco - They used to say, “It takes a village to raise a child.” 

Wayne Mashek may be saying, “It takes a [Christmas] village to bring families together.”

One of Mashek’s holiday traditions since 1992 has been to set out his Christmas Village. The whole family gets involved in setting out piece after piece, making a four-tier village in their sun room.

This year, though, there is no room at the inn. Wayne and Kelly’s daughter, Alicia, is getting married New Year’s Eve to Blake Andera. “The village takes up the whole room, and we need that room, so I got kicked out,” Wayne laughed.

The dilemma of where to place his village was solved when long-time A&W/Long John Silvers employee, Reta Bronner, told him to put it in the Marie Room, named after his mom, at the Cresco restaurant.

Kids and adults are enthralled when they look at the village. There is so much to see! Wayne said it has even inspired others with villages to take theirs out of storage.

The village buildings and accessories are perfect gifts for Wayne. He receives one or two for his brithday on Dec. 4 and a couple more as Christmas gifts. 

Family members are always looking at garage sales and on-line auctions for good deals, because the pieces are not inexpensive. 

 

 

The intricate architecture, sparkly glitter and lighted windows show the elaborate details of the Dept. 56 collection.

Wayne, who admits he is a kid at heart, is especially fond of his first piece, a cafe with pizza guy attached to Village Realty.

Others at the top of the list are a newspaper delivery truck, which brings back memories of him helping deliver newspapers with his kids, and a Ford Mustang, one of his earlier vehicles.

One of the largest pieces sits at the top of the hill (a few boxes hidden with blanket to give it height) - Old Chelsea Mansion. It is the home of Clement Clark Moore, the author of “A Visit from St. Nicholas.”

His most recent favorite piece is the football stadium. Wayne is probably most proud of the Dallas Cowboys pennant flying from the stadium’s peak.

He has enjoyed the tradition of putting out the village for nearly 25 years. “The kids unpack the houses, and I set them up, hiding the cords with snow.”

So is putting the village up at the restaurant a new tradition? It’s hard to say. One of Wayne’s favorite resting spots at home is his easy chair, putting his feet up and admiring his village. Maybe he’ll have to move his chair as well!