Two Christmases ago, Danielle Sexton of Elkton, Maryland, was diagnosed with brain cancer.
The battle she had been consigned to unexpectedly on Christmas Day was made more daunting by the pandemic.
“We were in the thick of COVID and I was diagnosed and receiving my chemotherapy at University of Pennsylvania Hospital, where I had to be inpatient every 21 days,’’ Sexton recalled.
The hardest part, she said, was going through it alone, as she was not allowed visitors due to COVID-19 restrictions.
“Usually, after the last chemo treatment, the patient, with their family watching, gets to ring the bell in celebration,’’ she explained. “I was never given that opportunity and casually mentioned how special it must be.’’
Someone was listening carefully, and now her favorite Christmas tree ornament reflects that kindness.
“On Christmas morning, 2021, my husband handed me a gift to open before anyone or anything else,’’ she remembered. “When I did, it took my breath away. He told me that I am the strongest, bravest person he knows, and I should have the chance to ring a bell. So, sitting on my couch, in my pajamas, I rang the bell. As my husband and kids clapped, I cried tears of joy and was and forever will be thankful.’’
While Sexton’s story is especially poignant, she is not alone in singling out an ornament off her tree as the most meaningful of all.
More:Seeking holiday fun? Here’s your one-stop spot for Christmas, New Years events in Delaware
As we anticipate Christmas, we reached out to our readers and asked them to share with us photos of their favorite ornaments, as well as the story behind them that gives them special status on the tree each holiday season.
We got an overwhelming response to our question, which prompted memories of lost loved ones, joyful milestones, inside jokes, favorite activities, Delaware pride and much more.
We share many of the stories here, and more in our accompanying gallery of photos at the top of our story.
Nothing small about the memories
Carol Giampietro of Ardentown had no trouble selecting her favorite ornament on the tree.
“[This] very old and tiny stocking is my favorite,’’ she said in an email. “It’s a reminder that not everything in life needs to be grandiose to have value.’’
That sentiment is echoed by Tish and Fred Gallagher of historic New Castle.
“Our favorite ornament is also the smallest,’’ they explain. “It’s a tiny basket carved from a peach pit by Fred’s maternal grandfather, Albert R. Kirby. Then he used it as a ‘worry stone’ until it achieved the polished surface it has today.
“We tied a little red ribbon on it years ago and hung it on the tree because we didn’t have many tree ornaments. Forty-seven years later, we have lots of ornaments but this little one always has a prime spot on our tree!’’
Frank Borrelli also cherishes a tiny ornament hanging in a place of honor on his tree each year, a handmade drum crafted by his mother 71 years ago.
“The top and bottom of the drum were aluminum milk bottle tops used by Meadow Gold Dairy in Pittsburgh, Pa.,’’ said Borrelli, who now lives in Pittsburgh. The side of the drum is painted by hand in watercolors.
“Although a little crumbled today, it reminds me how my parents being first- and second-generation immigrants of humble beginnings spent days preparing for the celebration of Christmas.’’
As to the key to Kathy Franklin’s heart, it came with a pair of roller skates.
Franklin, of Wilmington, considers her old skate key a special ornament at Christmas.
“What could be more nostalgic?’’
Oldies but goodies
It’s not surprising that the most precious decorations have seen many, many Christmases.
Margie Webb of Wilmington takes special care with a glass Santa perched on a crescent moon.
“My favorite ornament belonged to my Great Aunt Catherine, who if she were living, would be 111,’’ she explained. “So, imagine the Santa on the crescent moon must be about 150 years old. Blown glass and so fragile. I remember looking at it hanging on her tree when they lived in Hockessin.’’
Kay Wells looks forward to hanging a glass ornament from 1948 on her tree each year.
“My mother bought it for me when I was 11 years old. … It survived four sons and still looks good!’’ the Wilmington resident joked.
Barbara White of Newark has a lifetime of Christmas memories to share, and cherished ornaments to go with them.
The fragile, glass bell and other ornaments are not something she takes for granted.
“I’m 90 now, and these ornaments were first used Christmas 1932 when I was 9 months old. It was during the height of the Great Depression and I’m surprised that my parents could even afford them. My dad worked in a bakery in Dover … at $16 per week for as many hours as the boss wanted you to work. There was a line of men at the door to take your job if you complained,” she confided.
“There was a fire in my parents’ house in 1965 and the rest of my childhood ornaments were lost,” she recalled. “Fortunately, I had taken these when I was married in 1952 and they have been on my Christmas tree ever since so they’re part of my family’s Christmas memories, too.”
Now she shares them with her three grandsons and four great-grandchildren.
All creatures great and small
Reindeer are a popular addition to Christmas trees, and Jimmy McKay of New Castle has a special one.
Fashioned from peanut shells, “This Nutty Christmas Reindeer was handmade by my grandmother and her friends who sold their ceramics and crafts at craft shows/bazaars. It is from the mid-1980s, and is a reminder of the fun times I had with my grandmother and her friends helping them create and sell their crafts.”
But Rudolph and friends aren’t the only critters to make it onto Douglas firs and blue spruce branches.
For Michael Snyder of Wilmington, it’s all about the bears.
“My husband and I collect bears for our special Christmas ornaments,” he shared. “Each year since we started dating, we will pick a new one for the year or if we see one that we especially love during the rest of the year, we will get it. My goal would be to have our own ‘Bear Tree!’”
Still with us at Christmas
Christmas is a time for being with those we love and remembering those no longer joining us around the tree.
For Stacy Roberts of New Castle, that means unwrapping and finding hooks for ornaments decorated with pictures of Roberts’ parents, who died recently. They were a gift from Roberts’ wife.
Roberts also holds dear ornaments from a Cape Cod whale-watching trip and from their honeymoon in Amsterdam.
Donald Bischoff owns the Crimson Moon Tavern in Wilmington.
His favorite ornament is a pair of sparkly angel wings given to him in memory of Robert Ellis, “a dear friend to many at the Crimson Moon and throughout Wilmington who died unexpectedly a couple of years ago.”
Reflecting the lights off Karen Hudson’s tree is a gold carousel horse given to her by her sister the first Christmas after losing their father.
“As a child, he would visit family in Ocean City, Maryland, just blocks from Trimper’s Amusement Rides that included a 1912 Grand Carousel full of beautiful wooden animals. Years later, he would become postmaster at Ocean City. And in October 1988 the USPS issued a 25-cent commemorative stamp featuring carousel animals. The last picture we have of Dad is from the stamp’s first day of issue celebration and he is standing next to that beautiful Grand Carousel.”
The festive – and the unexpected
Mike Leister is pretty certain he has an ornament on his tree unique in all of Delaware.
“Who would imagine that the CIA would have a gift store at Langley Headquarters? Who would believe they have a wonderful museum that almost no one can visit?” asks the Magnolia resident.
“I was fortunate to visit both some years ago when I was asked to give some guidance on how to preserve an aircraft in their collection. I used to work at the AMC Museum at Dover AFB. They invited me over to examine their spy plane, and afterwards visit their in-house museum. Before we left, we got to visit their gift store and it had some pretty fine swag including this ornament.”
Rick Berl of Lewes and his wife like to accumulate unusual ornaments.
“We have birds from Caribbean islands, a Bigfoot from out west, a Cal Ripken statuette, and since we have children, naturally a large assortment of Disney-related characters,” Berl said. “But the one I like the most is a hand-painted eggshell with scenes of coastal Delaware, where we have resided for the last 40 years.”
Their favorite is an egg adorned on one side with the Cape Henlopen Lighthouse, on the other the iconic Dolle’s in Rehoboth Beach.
“I can’t remember where we bought it or when (although we have had it at least 20 years). As you might expect, it is extremely fragile and I am a little surprised it has lasted this long. But, as long as we continue to decorate trees, and until it falls one night and breaks, it will appear prominently.”
Lynne Sklar of Rehoboth doesn’t celebrate Christmas, but she has a cherished ornament nonetheless.
“Our family is Jewish and celebrates Hanukkah but it is very difficult to find beautiful, quality decorations, especially years ago!” she said. “In 1997, a non-Jewish friend of mine gave me this beautiful, glass dreidel ornament as a gift, made by European designer Christopher Radko. This began my 25-year collection of Radko dreidels, all different and each a work of art. I currently have 13 that I proudly display each December but the first one, named Simon’s Dreidel, will always be my favorite!”
Made with love
John Schuyler of Wilmington made his family’s favorite ornament with his own two hands sometime around 1968.
The hand-carved ornament is made of black walnut and spells out “Tradition.”
“Having been made from a scrap of wood, it has no real monetary value but a great deal of sentimental family value. The tree isn’t considered decorated until this last ornament is placed on the tree. Though our tree has become smaller as we age, it is still the centerpiece of our tree …
“Not everything needs to be valued in dollars to be appreciated!”
Nancy Proud Freebery of Claymont can’t talk about the holidays without thinking of her dad.
“Charlie Proud was an awesome dad. Father of four, he was not a decorator … he left that to our very capable mom, Jane,” Freebery explained.
Which is why her favorite ornament, which will turn 65 next month, means all the more to her.
“Back then, you did not order personalized ‘Baby’s First Christmas’ ornaments online. So, with each new child, he selected an ornament just for us and printed, by hand, our name and birth year, and placed it on the back of the ornament. The kicker – he printed it on medical adhesive tape! And it lasted!
“I am the baby and my Santa is the only ornament ‘left hanging’ of the four! Although our parents are no longer with us, all of my siblings are, and we remember our ornaments with such joy. Dad’s favorite line was “Be of Good Cheer” – and not just at Christmas. And boy was he! Merry Christmas!”
More holiday stories
Need a feast?These Delaware restaurants are cooking up something good for you this Christmas
No shame in asking:Where to get a free holiday meal, groceries this month
Share the blessings:Where to find free gifts or give donations during this holiday season
