BY ANN CIPPERLY
FOR THE OBSERVER
OPELIKA —The Forestdale Christmas Story will once again be on display starting the week of Dec. 9th. Located between Samford Drive and Moore’s Mill Road in Auburn, the neighborhood in three-fourths a mile from College Street, can be accessed by Scott Street off Samford Drive and also directly from Moore’s Mill Road.
Since 1957 the Forestdale neighborhood has displayed 12 Christmas panels along Forestdale Drive, depicting the Christmas story as told from the Bible by Matthew and Luke.
Over the past 67 years the display panels have deteriorated and were in such poor condition, the neighborhood chose to only display the Nativity scene in recent years. In 2023, a decision to redo the story panels was made and a fundraising effort was begun by resident Pete Forster.
Late in 2023, a committee was formed to develop the next steps to identify resources, create a budget and initiate an action plan to move us forward. One of the biggest challenges to overcome was securing a local artist who could share their talents and capture each verse of scripture with an image reflecting the scripture.
The project was introduced to local artist John Willer and his wife, Susette Urmenata, who live in Opelika. After sharing the background on the project John and Susette agreed to put forth their creative collaborative artistic talents towards painting 12 new images that would reflect each verse of scripture from the Bible.
As declared in John’s resume, his inimitable artistic style could be described as a symbiotic union of Claude Monet, Willem de Kooning and Jackson Pollock. John’s energetic brushwork and vast mastery of subject matter, combined with his personal color sense, result in some amazing and provocative images.
In his 50 -plus years as a painter, he has won over 40 awards too numerous to recount and his work can be found in collections all over the world, including the collection of Alice Walton and AAMCO Corporate collection.
As the project further developed the neighborhood also needed to identify a better way to assemble the displays into existing four by eight metal frames, which stand in front of 12 homes on Forestdale Drive.
With the help of Auburn Industrial Design Associate Professor Chris Arnold, a resident of the Forestdale neighborhood, and new resident Tony Hancock, a GT Industrial Design graduate, the concept of having two four by four panels to fit in existing frames was created.
This allowed ease of assembly, a medium for the artist’s paintings and a separate panel for the verses of Bible scripture that accompany the images. Smaller panels also would become easier to store and move. Dave Gowan, shop director with Auburn’s School of Industrial and Graphic Design, prototyped the concept and eventually facilitated fabrication of 24 new panels.
Funding for the project expanded through the Go Fund Me site. Both neighbors as well as members of the community have contributed over the last year to allow the project to move forward.
Local businesses also provided discounts for materials like paint, printing and typeface settings for the scripture verses, which helped reduce costs. Presently, paintings are being completed for the new images and volunteers are hand painting lettering on panels for the scripture verses.
“We look forward to welcoming everyone in the area to see the revival of the Forestdale Christmas Story,’ said Tony Hancock “Those entering from Samford Drive will first see the five scriptures from Matthew, followed by the Nativity scene in the cul-de-sac and then additional verses from Luke.
“If entering from Moores Mill Road, the seven verses of scripture from Luke will be seen first, followed by the Nativity and then five verses from Matthew,” Hancock added. “ To see all scriptures in the order written in the Bible, make a turnaround and pass back through Forestdale Drive a second time.
“The Forestdale neighborhood is privileged to bring back this wonderful story of Christ’s Birth that so many in the Village of Auburn remember from years past,” said Hancock. “We are so very thankful to all who have supported us, both financially and through words of support and encouragement. We cannot thank the artists enough who have given back to this community, allowing us to renew the message of Hope that Christmas brings.
“All efforts for this project combined is just one more example of why We all Believe in Auburn and Love It!”
