By Crystal McGough
Copy Editor
CLAY—Rain didn’t stop the citizens of Clay from coming out to the 2018 City of Clay Christmas Tree Lighting ceremony at Cosby Lake Sunday evening.
The ceremony opened with a performance by the Clay-Chalkville High School Jazz Ensemble.
Story Church provided hot chocolate for all in attendance and the City of Clay provided cookies. Clearview Baptist Church Pastor Robbie Weems gave a short message encouraging family unity.
“I was trying to think of what to say tonight, and please put your football thoughts away,” Weems said. “Please be neutral in this, ok? I was wondering what pushes a man like Nick Saban. What makes him like he is? Why is he so determined, why does he do what he does? It’s his father. His father died when he was 22 years old. His father was 46. His father would go when he was a child—he bought a bus—and he would pick up little boys in the community, Highway 218 in West Virginia. They started the Pop Warner team. They lost every game the first year. They lost half the games the second year. The third year, the opposing teams could not get past the 50 yard line, they were so good. His father was a mainstay in his life. Everything he’s learned and everything he’s done is because of his dad.
“I’ve begun to think about, God began to impress on me the importance of this…the importance of family. The importance of a father and a mother…How you raise your kids and the godly man and woman you are will impact them forever. God created three institutions: family, the government, and then the church. Family was first.”
After the message, the band played again, with a special solo performance sung by CCHS Senior and Drum Major Courtney Dianne Ray.
The ceremony ended with the lighting of the Christmas tree on the Cosby Lake peninsula, while Santa Claus rode down the main walking trail.
“We had a great time at the tree lighting and brought in Santa, starting out the Christmas season,” Mayor Charles Webster said. “The new jazz band did a great job tonight. I’m real excited about what they’re going to be doing throughout the year. They’re looking for places to play, so if anybody wants to have a jazz band come and play for them, they’d be glad to set up something and come play and get some more practice in.”
Webster said that, while he didn’t have an exact number, he believes there were 200-300 people in attendance, despite the rainy weather.
“I know we had about 30 kids in the jazz band, so we probably had a couple parents from each one of them,” he said. “So we probably had a couple hundred to 300 people here tonight.”