What's Happening...
Kris Kringle Christmas Boutique - December 5, 2020
The Diorama Christmas Exhibit
WELCOME TO HEMINGFORD NEBRASKA... See what events are coming to the Western Panhandle!
The Pine Ridge Job Corps youth traveled to Hemingford on Friday, Feb. 11, 2017 to take down the Christmas Diorama. The weather was thankfully favorable that day as the youth helped take down and haul panels back to their storage area. For several years now the youth of the Pine Ridge Job Corps have helped with putting up and taking down the Christmas Diorama. A big thank you also goes to the Minich family who has spearheaded the Diorama project for several years now, as well as the youth of Hemingford Schools for their contributions in putting up the Diorama and to Lori Dannar for spearheading the Diorama food booth at the County Fair.
Lyle Fodnes/Ledger
History of the DIORAMA display
featured every Christmas in Hemingford west of the Fairgrounds.
Rev W. James Hoare came to Hemingford in May of 1952. He came from England and had lived with relatives in India and South Africa. Her served churches in South Dakota, Minnesota and Wyoming in addition to the Congregational Church at Hemingford. Rev. Hoare was perhaps a little ahead of his time. Teaching aids were not as available or varied as they are today. He had a passion for presenting the Gospel visually, and as his wife said in a letter at the time of the 25th anniversary of the Diorama, at times he would make them himself, making sure each student had a personal copy. He was fond of using the Christmas Pageant as a teaching tool. But he also had in mind the "diorama" concept, a giant visual aid of the Gospel, before he came to Hemingford, but Hemingford was the first community to be interested.
Rev. Hoare passed away in February of 1957 after only 2 showings and 8 scenes were completed. He left behind his complete plan for the Diorama. An inspired base of volunteers was dedicated to his vision and continued the task. He originally envisioned 35 scenes. Right now there are 15, not counting the first 12 foot dedication display with his picture and the last 12 foot scene with the off-set cross. Many of the planned scenes were on the same topic; for instance, there is one scene today that represents the flight of Joseph, Mary and the baby Jesus to Egypt. Rev. Hoare's plan also included "Pause on the way to Egypt, "Repose in Egypt" and "Return to Nazareth". By 1980 the space for the Diorama was maxed out. Several of those planned scenes were incorporated into a larger single scene, as with Scene 2.
Clyde Lawson, the first co-chairman with George Bacon until George passed away, and continued on as chairman, commented at the 25th anniversary of the Diorama: "Rev. Hoare was a close friend of mine and he used to sit and tell how he had this dream of building a Diorama on the Birth of Christ. He seemed to be unable to create an interest in other communities where he had served. I suggested to him that this project should be presented to the Community Chamber of Commerce and that I felt if he worked with Arnold Kuhn, Editor of the Hemingford Ledger, that he would at least be able to present it to the Chamber. Rev. Hoare built a miniature model and presented it to the Chamber, and they became interested and voted to help back and start the project. The first year (1955) four scenes were built and displayed on Box Butte at the south end. He next year we built four more scenes, also on Box Butte Avenue, and the scenes were placed back to back in order to get them all displayed."
Mrs. Hoare in her letter at the time of the 25th anniversary gave this further insight: "So with the Hemingford Chamber of Commerce Diorama Project, he sensed a need to stress again, and effectively, the spirituality of the Christmas Season with all its religious and historical implications. I think it was also an effort to gain a degree of unity in a community. By force of personality and imagination, he started the ball rolling towards welding the community into a working unit. We worked together and became acquainted across social and denominational lines and found we liked it."
Clyde Lawson continues, "In February of 1957 we were all stunned when we heard the passing of Rev. Hoare. We felt like the world had stopped and we would never get anything else done, but after we regrouped, we felt this is not what Rev. Hoare wanted, so we felt that we should pitch in and see what we could do."
Mrs. Hoare said when the Memorial panel to him was made to honor him: "To the people of Hemingford and in Western Nebraska: Please know that enthusiasm and hard work was a fitting reward to him for all the years that went into the contributions of materials or where-with-all, you seemingly untiring work, your promotion of the plan through word of mouth and through viewing it, you enjoyment in working together – words fail me when I want to tell you how much your response meant to him."
Les Schaper, Roger Davies and Lyle Fodnes, former Diorama coordinators, and the Minich family agree that you can't help but be in awe that the Diorama project has continued this long. So many people have helped with the Diorama down through the years: painting, fixing, priming boards, putting it up or taking it down, Chamber members, businesses or individuals that contributed money or items, shop classes, art classes, artists, youth groups, organizations, the Job Corps, churches in the area, volunteers helping with the Diorama booth, carpenters and others. They have made it possible for thousands to view the Diorama since 1955.