(Le Mars) — The basement of St. John’s Lutheran Church of Le Mars will transform into the town of Bethlehem on Sunday afternoon as more than 300 volunteers help with the production of “Bethelhem Revisited”. Dr. Becky DeRuyter of Le Mars serves as one of the co-chairs for the much anticipated event. She says the event is more than a “live nativity scene”.
Listen to
{audio} images/stories/mp3/December 2015/DeRyter1.MP3{/audio}
DeRuyter says people will then traverse through the city of Bethelhem.
Listen to
{audio} images/stories/mp3/December 2015/DeRyter2.MP3{/audio}
The event coordinator says following the city the attendees will be lead to the fields where the shepards keep watch over their flock of sheep, until they reach the stable.
Listen to
{audio} images/stories/mp3/December 2015/DeRyter3.MP3{/audio}
DeRuyter says the Lutheran church puts on the large production only once every five years. She, her husband, and the other co-chairs Dr. Greg Jenery and his wife began planning for the event more than a year in advance. She says this last month is when the church volunteers helped “build Bethelhem”.
Listen to
{audio} images/stories/mp3/December 2015/DeRyter4.MP3{/audio}
DeRuyter says the church basement will have live animals which adds to the authenticity for the production.
Listen to
{audio} images/stories/mp3/December 2015/DeRyter5.MP3{/audio}
Photos contributed.
There is free admission to the “Bethlehem Revisited” production, and the hours it will be operating are from 12:00 noon until 6:00 p.m. DeRuyter says attendees should be able to pass through the interactive live exhibit within 45 minutes.
