Santa does side jobs? :)

Many of you are familiar with my painting entitled “Unblemished,” which depicts an old gentleman holding a little lamb.  Some of you have even read my account of how the painting came to be.  What you don’t know yet is that he’s still doing his Santa gig during the holidays, and my husband and I ran into him at Gaylord Opryland’s Hall of Trees, where my artwork is being auctioned this month!

Nate and I were in Jackson, TN for another art show the weekend before Thanksgiving, so we had hired someone to set up our tree and art display at Opryland’s Hall of Trees this year.  When we arrived the next week to see the exhibit, we were surprised with much more!

The Hall of Trees is an amazing display of sponsored trees from different individuals and businesses.  The businesses decorate and donate goods and services, and 17,000+ visitors come through to bid on the trees.  All proceeds go to the charity that the business chooses.  This year, I participated, and I have a tree on display with goods totaling $1900!  The charity I chose to benefit is the Abba House Foundation in Thailand, where I served in 2007.  The Abba House is taking care of girls who have been rescued from brothels, child trafficking, and other abusive or potentially abusive situations.

At any rate, the Hall of Trees is part of a larger event known as Winter Wonderland, complete with photos you can take with Santa while you are there! Wouldn’t you know that I recognized Santa? He was none other than the man I asked to model for “Unblemished.” On his break, he joined us at my tree and we took photos with him. It was a wonderful reunion!