Nashville – As the holidays approach, so do the challenges of finding the “perfect gift” for family and friends, but a 44-year-old Nashville tradition, “Christmas Village,” is sure to help with holiday gift giving.
The show, which is open to the public Friday, Nov. 11 – Sunday, Nov. 13 at the Tennessee State Fairgrounds, benefits the Vanderbilt Bill Wilkerson Center and is produced by the Nashville Pi Beta Phi Alumnae Club.
This annual event, which began in 1961, is recognized as the premier consumer show in the southeast. It has raised $3.6 million for the Vanderbilt Bill Wilkerson Center, as well as an additional $1.6 million for other philanthropic organizations, including the Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts in Gatlinburg, Tenn.
Over 260 merchants from across the country will be selling their holiday gift wares as more than 20,000 enthusiastic shoppers attend the four-day event (including a private sneak preview night), which will feature such items as Christmas decorations, toys for all ages, clothing for adults and children, jewelry, food, antiques, pottery, collectibles and gifts for the “person who has everything.”
Tickets for Friday, Nov. 11 at 9 a.m. – 9 p.m., Saturday, Nov. 12 at 9 a.m. – 6 p.m. and Sunday, Nov. 13 at 12-6 p.m., will be $7 at the door. Advance tickets will be available for $6 at Nashville-area SunTrust Bank branches and at the Vanderbilt Bill Wilkerson Center (615-936-5000). For additional information, please visit www.christmasvillage.org
The Vanderbilt Bill Wilkerson Center serves persons challenged by communication-related diseases and disorders. These include deafness, autism, stuttering, accidental brain injury, vocal disorders, swallowing disorders, speech and language delays, balance disorders and other conditions that affect the ability to communicate. Serving patients from Nashville as well as from through the entire region and across the nation, the Center makes over 50,000 patient contacts every year.
The Nashville Pi Beta Phi Alumnae Club was chartered in 1929 by 10 area alumnae of the Pi Beta Phi Fraternity, the first organization of college women founded as a national fraternity. Pi Beta Phi Fraternity is a women’s Greek organization with more than 220,000 members and 134 chapters on college and university campuses in the United States and Canada. The 2005 Christmas Village is sponsored by SunTrust Bank and other corporate sponsors.
For an ADA accommodation, please contact Christmas Village at www.christmasvillage.org, or call the information line (615) 256-2726.