"Sleigh bells ring, are you listening, in the lane, snow is glistening ..."

Orangeburg will have its own bea.jpgul sight for many a night as the city is transformed into its own "Winter Wonderland" through its annual Christmas Lighting Ceremony on Sunday, Nov. 18.

The celebration will begin with Downtown Orangeburg Revitalization Association's traditional Christmas program at 6:30 p.m. at Stevenson Auditorium, followed by the lighting of Memorial Plaza.

At 6 p.m. Monday, Nov. 19, the Children's Garden Christmas and the Kids' Walk at Edisto Memorial Gardens will be lit.

This year will mark the city's 15th annual program.

"As we approach the Advent season and as we prepare for Thanksgiving, it has been the custom for the city of Orangeburg to turn on the Christmas lights on the Sunday and Monday before Thanksgiving," said Orangeburg Mayor Paul Miller. "We are particularly glad to be able to make these bea.jpgul lights available during this season for many visitors who will ride through our Gardens free of charge to enjoy the many bea.jpgul displays.

"We trust that this will allow each and every one of you to begin to get into the spirit of the season, and I, as mayor, wish each of you a very joyous holiday and a prosperous New Year."

Downtown spreads 'Christmas joy'

"Christmas Joy!" DORA's holiday program, will be held 6:30 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 18, in Stevenson Auditorium. It is free and open to the public.

The program, directed by Orangeburg-Wilkinson High School Choral Director Sheniece D. Smith, will feature traditional and contemporary Christmas music and will be followed by the lighting of Memorial Plaza at 7:45 p.m.

This year, Ferse 5&10 owners Roy and Virginia Chandler will light the Plaza.

The Chandlers took over Orangeburg's hometown "five and dime" store 20 years ago following a semiretirement in 1985. Ferse 5&10 has been a fixture of downtown Orangeburg since 1906 and has been housed in its current location since 1936.

Prior to purchasing the store, Sumter County native Roy Chandler spent 30 years with S.H. Kress and Co. and five years in sales at Southern Associated Hosiery Mills. Chandler managed four stores in towns across the United States and spent 11 years in the executive office of the Kress company in New York City.

During his time in Orangeburg, Chandler organized the "Uptown Orangeburg Merchant Association," which successfully operated for eight years in downtown Orangeburg before DORA was organized.

Chandler served on the DORA planning committee, and Ferse 5&10 became a charter member of DORA. He has received a number of awards for his business, including the Master Merchant Award from the S.C. Downtown Development Association.

Dr. Jerry Songer, interim pastor at First Baptist Church in Orangeburg, will provide the Christmas message. Christmas music will also be featured.

'Making spirits bright' in the Gardens

The Kids' Walk and Children's Garden Christmas at Edisto Memorial Gardens will be turned on at 6 p.m. Monday, Nov. 19, at the lower parking lot. The event is free and open to the public.

Dr. Henry Frierson will light the Kids' Walk, and former South Carolina State University Head Football Coach Willie Jeffries and his wife, Mary, will light the Children's Garden Christmas.

A Union native, Frierson graduated from Clemson University before attending medical school. He served an internship at C. General Hospital in Washington, D.C., and had his surgical residency at Roper Hospital in Charleston and at the Medical University of South Carolina.

During his residency, Frierson married Charlotte Causey, a native of Fairfax.

In the mid-1950s, shortly after his marriage, Frierson served as a captain in the U.S. Army Medical Corps, stationed in Germany. Following his military service, Frierson moved to Orangeburg and joined the practice of Wells Brabham Jr.

Frierson served 36 years as a surgeon at the Orangeburg Regional Hospital and, beginning in 1981, the Regional Medical Center. He has also served in a number of professional organizations, including the American Board of Surgery, American College of Surgeons, S.C. Chapter of the American College of Surgeons and S.C. Surgical Society. He retired from practice in 1994.

Frierson devoted eight years to Orangeburg City Council, representing District 1 from 1981 to 1989. He and his wife have four children.

Jeffries began his coaching career in high school leagues, leading Granard High School to three straight South Carolina Class AAA championships (1964-66). He later become the winningest head coach in both S.C. State and Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference history and served a brief stint with Louisiana's Grambling State University as its athletics director.

Since his retirement, Jeffries has kept busy as a fund-raiser, guest speaker, radio analyst for S.C. State football games and participant in various statewide and community events.

He and his wife have been married nearly 46 years. They have three grown children and six grandchildren.

Mary Jeffries met her husband while she was a social studies teacher at Barr Street High School in Lancaster. She has worked with and advised students most of her life, working in higher education and the public school system for more than four decades.

During her tenure at Howard University and S.C. State, she assisted and admitted thousands of students to the universities. She also worked with counseling and career placement and planning while at S.C. State.

Her civic services include the Regional Medical Center Foundation Board, membership in the Orangeburg Chapter of the Links Inc. and Delta Sigma Theta Sorority.

The Rev. Mike Smith, senior pastor at St. Andrews United Methodist Church in Orangeburg, will present the Christmas message.

'The Sights and Sounds of Christmas'

Following the Kids' Walk/Children's Garden Christmas lighting ceremony and visits with Santa, the Orangeburg County Fine Arts Center will present "The Sights and Sounds of Christmas" from 6:30 to 8 p.m. in the Lusty Gallery.

On display will be the "Festival of Mayors' Wreaths and Trees" for visitors to enjoy as they listen to the O-W Choir and Trinity United Methodist Church Men's Choir present holiday favorites.

Hot chocolate will be served in the Terrace Garden from 6 to 8 p.m. The "Festival of Mayors' Wreaths and Trees" will be on display through Dec. 6.

Riverside Drive will be closed to vehicular traffic at approximately 5:30 p.m. Monday, Nov. 19, for the lighting of the Children's Garden Christmas and Kids' Walk. It will reopen to one-way traffic at 8 p.m. following the event.

T&D Staff Writer Gene Zaleski can be reached by e-mail at gzaleski@timesanddemocrat.com or by telephone at 803-533-5551. Discuss this and other stories online at TheTandD.com.

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