Gayle Condrey and her niece, Kathleen Martin, have long enjoyed driving through small towns at Christmas, especially those who go all out with lighting up their main streets, town squares and other public spaces for the season. The more colorful, the better. Last year, they vowed that this Christmas Lake Providence too would be something to behold.
The two began scheming and collecting ideas and decor, and this month the fruits of their creativity and hard work fill Lake Street for all of us to enjoy. They have chosen decorations that can be reused year after year, though they plan also to add to what they have done. The streets are lit with string lights that they along with their husbands, Ricky Condrey and Neil Martin, hung themselves as well as Christmas colored balloons.
They recruited Stephanie and James Thornton and their daughter, Sadie Pippin, to decorate the windows of the Kilpatrick building with a life-size Santa Claus and huge hand-drawn words – merry, bright, holly, jolly. They also encouraged local businesses to light up their windows and facades, to add greenery and wreaths.
Condrey and Martin thank the town of Lake Providence, especially Lee Ann Clement who orchestrated the painting of the fire truck downtown, and the sheriff and the trustees for their help. They also would like to extend a special thank you to Tim Hamilton who showed up just when they needed them.
They call the project Light Up LP!, and hope that next year even more locals will want to be a part of filling our streets with joy. For now, they are full of gratitude to everyone for the kind words and the participation from downtown businesses. There are so many donors, both private and businesses, who made this project possible, and they are grateful to Doorway to Louisiana as well for organizing the donations.
