On Dec. 21, the 2011 Jingle Bell Run will take place at the Hilton Anatole in Dallas. This will be a very fun event for all ages as there is a 1 mile race as well as a 5k. Part of the fun is also seeing everyone dressed up as reindeers, elves and Santas. The race will begin at 6:30 and costs 25 dollars for those wishing to register on the day of the race. The Jingle Bell Run benefits the Trinity Strand Trail and the Mavericks Foundation.

To register for the race, click here.

Many students at CHS have family traditions where they pile into their family car and drive around town, viewing the assortment of decorated houses. The luminous Christmas lights have become a favorite in the eyes of many people as each year families show off their creativity and spend quality time together donning their house with various decorations.

The tradition carries on with Coppell family man Jim Hall, who takes the traditional decorated house to a whole new level. Not only is his house beautifully decorated with an assortment of lights and trees, the lights on his house are actually synchronized to Christmas songs.

Hall has his own broadcast station on which he chooses an arrangement of songs and has them playing through the station. In his cul-de-sac, cars can tune their radio to 107.3 FM to listen in on the music. For those who want to enjoy the outside ambiance, they can sit on a bench provided by Hall and listen and observe the sight through a speaker outside his house.

The outside speaker plays until 8 p.m.; then it shuts off in respect of Hall’s neighbors. However, the radio station that can be accessed in people’s cars until 9 p.m.. People are encouraged to come and bring their families to enjoy this one of a kind light show.

“The kids really enjoy watching [the light show],” junior Hannah Griffiths, Hall’s neighbor, said. “They think it is cool that the lights synchronize with the music.”

The house is truly something to see, with the dazzling lights flashing in time with the upbeat songs, and the heartwarming nativity scene, it is a sight to be seen firsthand. The newest attractions to Hall’s house are the lighted icicles hanging from the tree and a “Merry Christmas” sign against the brick house underneath the right window. The song list this year includes favorites such as “Jingle Bells”, “Santa Clause is Coming to Town”, and “Deep in the Heart of Texas”.

“During Christmas time I listen to the radio, and I pick about ten songs and envision how it will look,” Hall said. “The elements generally stay the same; I mainly figure out if the song will work out or not, then it comes down to the order of the show.  I try to get a flow through the show and I try to balance it out with some techno songs and rock songs. This year it’s heavy on the rock music.”

Besides picking the songs that go into this light show, Hall has a considerable amount of physical setup and programming to do in order to get the perfect show. This year, he used 110 channels of light with a total of 16,000 lights the puts up. He starts setting up the outside decorations Nov. 1, but the programming he does is year round.

“[Hall] does a great job at setting up the show,” neighbor and junior Bailey Aguilar said. “It’s enjoyable for everyone and it is a new family tradition of mine to see the show. You can tell that a lot of hard work goes into this production and it is definitely appreciated by everyone.”

Hall is not the only one in the Dallas area with a light show house. Lonestarholidays.com provides a contact link page with a display map of all the light shows on a map for people to visit.

A good way to soak up the holiday cheer is to head down to the Hall house for a free light show, filled with catchy music and the hypnotizing light performance. It is a great activity for the family, as well as a fun hangout for friends. However, in respect of the neighborhood and the Hall household, it is appreciated if attendees keep the noise level to a minimum in order not to wake up the Hall children and the other families in the neighborhood.

“Wide assortments of people come, from families with young kids, to the show choir, Vivace!, that came out to sing one year which was interesting; we get a wide variety of people. Overall it is a family friendly environment,” Hall said

With the growth of ideas such as Hall’s comes the time for new family traditions; this year a big one on many people’s lists is to see the new lightshow put on by Hall and his family. The pastime of viewing Christmas lights has turned into its own Christmas light show that is sure to dazzle many with its vibrant show filled with joy and good tidings.

By Jordan Bickham
Staff Writer

Coppell and surrounding cities are filled with an abundance of winter attractions for this holiday season.  Some of these attractions include the Gaylord Ice Show, which takes place at the Gaylord Texan resort, Valley Ranch Baptist’s Christmas store, and the many Christmas light to look at.

The Gaylord Ice Show is open from Nov. 11 to Jan 1.  This show is definitely a unique holiday experience with various sculptures carved from a total of two million pounds of ice.  This year the theme is Dreamworks’ Shrek the Halls based on the TV holiday special of the same name.

These sculptures are created by dozens of ice carving artists who come all the way from Harbin, China just for this.  It takes them an entire month of 12 hour shifts to transform the simple tent into an icy wonderland.  You can view times and buy tickets at the Gaylord’s website.

This holiday season is also the season of giving, as shown by the Valley Ranch Baptist Church’s annual Christmas store.  The store serves over 1,200 inner-city children and their families, and gives them gifts for a merry Christmas. You can find more information and ways to help out at the church’s website.

Another winter entertainment idea is simply to look at lights.  While Coppell may not have the best lights, there are plenty of locations such as Frisco, Southlake and Highland Park Village that have great light displays.

Stay home and book your schedule this holiday season for one of the many winter attractions you can experience all around Coppell!

As the holiday season approaches, Coppell will once again perform their annual Holiday Parade of Lights this Saturday. It is sure to be a fun-filled event with dancing, music and of course Santa Claus.

The parade will begin at 6:30 near St. Ann’s Church and will end at Town Center Plaza. Once the parade is completed, the lighting of the Christmas tree at Town Center will occur along with photo opportunities for children with Santa Claus.

Although everyone is very excited for the parade, there is a chance of it being cancelled, as there is high chance of rain. In case of inclement weather on Saturday, you can follow CityofCoppell on Twitter for updates or call 972-304-3542.

As December rolls in the city of Coppell is welcoming the holiday feel. Decorations are being put up, present shopping time has begun, Starbucks is offering holiday drinks and Christmas music is being played everywhere. This Saturday December 3 Coppell will be having its annual Holiday Parade and Plaza Lighting to really ring in the holiday season.

The Holiday Parade is a parade where citizens can send in an application for their own float and decorate it as they wish. All of the floats will be lit up with lights and the parade also features the CHS Marching Band, Lariettes, Silver Stars, and this year will also feature the 2011 5A volleyball state champions, the Coppell Cowgirls. The parade begins at Parkway and Samuel and travels westward to Town Center Blvd., just west of City Hall and will end at Town Center Plaza.

The parade ends at Town Center Plaza but there’s more fun to be had. There will be the annual tree and plaza lighting, musical performances, refreshments and a special appearance by Santa Claus at the Plaza.

For more information on these events click here.

Dozens of dazzling floats will take to the streets and people will flock to Town Center Plaza for other festivities on Saturday Dec. 3,  as Coppell officially kicks off the holiday season!

This year’s edition of the annual parade will feature 37 floats and will follow its usual route travelling west on Parkway Boulevard from its intersection with Samuel Road.

The theme of the parade has been announced to be “Hometown Holiday.” Citizens have been encouraged to enter homemade floats as part of this theme. Floats begin lining up at 3:00 p.m., and the parade itself begins at 6:30, after judges have analyzed the floats.

About 1,500 are anticipated to be in attendance for the parade, but as the Coppell High School Band marches down the street, other festivities will be kicking off at the plaza behind Town Center . These include an indoor Santa Claus photo booth, live Christmas music from the Cover Down Band, fresh food and the annual lighting of the Coppell’s Christmas tree.

Coppell’s annual holiday parade, and the fesitivites at Town Center, is quickly becoming a treasured tradition for citizens and their families. It is sure to be a good time, and who knows – you might even see Frosty The Snowman!

Staff Writer

The thought of Christmas conjures up images of large Christmas trees decked out in ornaments, presents all over the floor, and tons of food; but is that what Christmas is truly about?

Christmas is a holiday based on religious beliefs, celebrating the birth of Christ. But with the invention of Santa Claus and presents appearing under the tree, the holiday has begun to lose its religious roots.

Christmas was first introduced on Dec 25 by Roman pagans through the holiday of Saturnalia, a weeklong period of lawlessness that ended on Dec 25. In the 4th century AD, Christianity adopted the holiday in hopes of converting pagan worshippers to Christianity, but there was nothing Christian about the holiday.

Photo illustration by Rachel Bush.

To fix this, they named the concluding day of Saturnalia to be Jesus’ birthday. While this is how the holiday began, the invention of Santa Claus did not come till much later with St. Nicholas.

St. Nicholas was a historic fourth-century saint and a Greek bishop of Myra. Due to many miracles he performed during his lifetime and his reputation for secret gift giving (such as putting coins in the shoes of those who left them out), he easily became the model for the modern Santa Claus.

The image of a jolly, chubby, older man came from the 1823 poem originally called “A Visit from St. Nicholas,” but is now known famously as “The Night Before Christmas,” that described him with twinkling eyes, merry dimples, rosy cheeks and that he was, “chubby and plump, a right jolly old elf…”

After this, other writers and artists continued to change the original European St. Nicholas bishop into the modern, elf Santa Claus.

With the evolution of Santa Claus into a man who slips down the chimney and scatters presents under the tree for the good children came the commercialization of the Christmas holiday. When businesses noticed the appeal of Christmas, they pounced, attracting people to their goods with the promise that they will be the perfect Christmas present.

While the season of giving among loved ones is always a positive aspect of the holiday, it should not overshadow the true purpose of the holiday.

Christmas is supposed to be a time of family connection, love and religion, but the true meaning has been overlooked with the promise of toys, a visit from Santa Claus and the thought of a North Pole. Instead of children looking forward to a family dinner and a nice break, they look forward to the morning when they get the toys they had been anticipating all year.

Giving and receiving gifts with friends and family is always wonderful, but when it takes away from the religious aspect and the true meaning, there is a problem.

I have definitely seen this modern aspect of Christmas first hand at my own house. With two younger siblings, the tradition of Santa Claus in my house is still going strong. While I look forward to visiting family and traveling, my brother and sister become delirious over the promise of gifts on Christmas morning, making their anticipation the only thing they focus on while visiting family.

This promise has made children greedy and focused on material items rather than making family connections that last a lifetime. Toys are thrown away within a few years, but family remains for years to come.

One great time to make these connections is during the Christmas holiday. But now, kids only care about toys, so these connections are not made and family seems unimportant.

What happened to the traditional Christmas dinner? What happened to Christmas caroling through the neighborhood? What happened to Christmas being about family and religion?

As society becomes more selfish and the need for new stuff increases, Christmas becomes more and more commercialized to appeal to everyone. As a religious holiday, Christmas attracts specifically those who practice that religion, but as Christmas becomes less about religion and more about gifts, it now appeals to everyone, making it a universal holiday.

While Christmas being a holiday everyone can enjoy is not bad, the fact that it’s meaning has completely changed over the years is not so good.

Christmas should be about making memories, close connections with family and gathering around the fire. Some families still celebrate it as such, but the majority has bent their own traditions to fit within society’s image of a classic Christmas holiday.

Now, Christmas is a seen as a day where kids ignore family and dive into presents, as relatives compete to give their family members the grandest gift.

Gifts cannot replace love, and Christmas cannot be replaced with a commercialized, general holiday that has no true meaning. The holiday that is supposed to represent love and family has become an empty holiday that relies on the promise of Santa Claus and gift.

In 1995, Coppell High School hosted the very first Holiday House & Craft Show  to raise funds for graduation night. Since then, the Holiday House & Craft Show has become one of the community’s treasured holiday traditions.

On Sunday, November 13, CHS will host the 16th edition of the annual event. Festivities will begin at 10:00 a.m. and continue until the closing time of 4:30 p.m. Admission to the Holiday House & Craft Show is only $5 for adults and $3 for students. As in years past, all funds go directly to CHS Project Graduation to ensure a safe and fun graduation night for seniors.

Holiday House offers a wide variety of holiday products including food, decor, gifts, clothes and children’s crafts. Furthermore, artisans have already purchased booths to sell one-of-a-kind products such as pottery and handmade jewelry.

This event is a perfect opportunity to get ahead in your holiday shopping, support Project Graduation, foster the holiday spirit and have a good time!

For students, the arrival of Nov. and Dec. ensures the soon to come fall and winter breaks. Countdowns are started and the excitement for the holidays build. However, the holiday season also brings the community holiday parade.

This year’s parade is Sat. Dec. 3 at 6:30 p.m. The theme for this year’s parade is “A Hometown Holiday!” and applications for float entries are now available.

There is no charge for entering; however, all organizations must complete a registration form by Mon. Nov. 21 and have a representative at the mandatory parade meeting on Mon. Nov. 28.

The holiday parade always promises festive, unique and lighted parade flats that will light the nighttime streets of Coppell. More information on float guidelines and restrictions can be found here.