Cultura Garden Club members enjoyed the holidays with their annual Christmas dinner meeting.

The festivities were held at the home of Brenda and Troy Oliver, with Judy Baker serving as co-hostess. The Olivers’ home was decorated beautifully for the holidays.

Each member was requested to bring either a vegetable dish that would go with a cooked ham, salad or dessert.

Following a delicious meal, a program was presented on using evergreens for Christmas decorations and centerpieces and how to care for them.

According to Brenda, program chairperson, centerpieces should last for a week or two. She recommended keeping centerpieces watered and even using a water bottle sprayer to mist them.

Brenda shared different type vases you can use for making your own centerpiece. Your centerpiece can be very natural and free-flowing. Feel free to follow your heart and enjoy creating your Christmas evergreen arrangement however you wish.

If you use evergreens for wreaths, mist them with water every week or so. Evergreens will deteriorate more rapidly in warm temperatures, so keep them in a cool place, away from heat sources and direct sunlight.

The meeting focused little on business or projects since this was a time to celebrate the holiday season.  However, members were commended for their work in decorating downtown and for a very successful Every Light a Prayer for Peace and Christmas Tree Lighting Ceremony.

Club members acknowledged this as the official month for the Ugly Sweater tradition by wearing their favorites. They modeled them, and club members selected the following winners: Most Creative, Sherry James; Most Out of Style, Darlene Hester; Silliest or Tackiest, Debra Spillers; and Most All-Around Sweater, Brenda Oliver.

Each winner received a gag gift – a Christmas lights necklace, sequined Santa hat, jingle bell necklace, jingle bell door hanger and black coal – to enjoy the rest of the season.

The highlight of the meeting was playing our Dirty Santa gift swap. Each member brought a $10 wrapped gift, and members drew numbers to make their selections in an orderly manner. Most members liked the gift they opened, but there were a few who stole gifts from others. In the end, the person who went first had the choice of any gift that was brought.

It was a lot of fun, and the evening ended in everyone wishing each other a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!