Father Christmas Visits Kendrick Mansion

The annual Kendrick Mansion open house is being held this weekend at the Kendrick Mansion. A Sheridan tradition, the Holiday Open House is sponsored by the Trail End Guilds, Inc., and is always held the first full weekend of December.

Sharie Shada, Superintendent talked about the event

She said that 36 volunteers came to help decorate the mansion this year in advance of the open house. “The trees already put up and lit, but everything else was decorated in two hours. It was a new record for us. She said they

Said that they decorated the trees with ornaments from the era, and the tree in the drawing room has the oldest ornaments on it, those are from the 1920s and 30s.

She added that they have figgy pudding back this year after a two-year hiatus, and she encouraged everyone to try that and the apple cider that was being served in the kitchen. There was also a printed recipe for the figgy pudding that attendees could take to make their own.

Father Christmas was set up in the ballroom at the Mansion each night, and he had this to say about his role at the open house.

To have reindeer bells, one needs reindeer, and Santa explained where his reindeer were during the open house.

Father Christmas said that no one seems to know who who he truly is. “It all started way back when with people in need, and my role was to step in and provide them with what they need.”

He added that this turned into gift giving; Santa and St. Nicholas gave gifts from the heart and in the spirit of the Christmas season.

There was a bevy of musical guests with performances beginning at at 4:00 and continue through 7:00. There is one more night of the open house left this year, Sunday, Dec. 4 beginning at 4 p.m.

There is an upcoming event on December 16, 17, and 18, 2022, Christmas with the Kendricks. During this event, visitors tour the Kendrick Mansion by electric candlelight and watch live actors perform a play that unfolds room by room. They step back in time to see what the Kendrick family and their staff members might have been doing on a Christmas Eve spent in their home, known from the start as Trail End.

For more information and tickets go to the Trail End Guilds website.