MADISON COOK
For The Portland Sun
Mary, Joseph and baby Jesus greet visitors to One Starry Night. MADISON COOKThe manger in which baby Jesus lay can be seen during the One Starry Night program. MADISON COOKOasis Seventh-day Adventist Church, site of the One Starry Night program. MADISON COOKA donkey like the one Mary would have ridden into Bethlehem waits to see visitors in the petting pen at One Starry Night. MADISON COOKVisitors to One Starry Night work on various crafts. MADISON COOKPart of the petting pen at One Starry Night. MADISON COOKVisitors to One Starry Night work on various crafts. MADISON COOKOne of the craft stations at One Starry Night. MADISON COOKVisitors to One Starry Night work on various crafts. MADISON COOKVisitors to One Starry Night work on various crafts. MADISON COOKVisitors to One Starry Night work on various crafts. MADISON COOKVisitors to One Starry Night walk through the various stations. MADISON COOKVisitors to One Starry Night walk through the various stations. MADISON COOKVisitors to One Starry Night walk through the various stations. MADISON COOKVisitors to One Starry Night work on various crafts. MADISON COOKOasis Seventh-day Adventist Church, site of the One Starry Night program. MADISON COOK

The Oasis Seventh-day Adventist Church held its annual “One Starry Night” program on Dec. 5-6, where guests were transported back in time to a Bethlehem village and marketplace. Visitors could roam freely, creating crafts, trying foods, making instruments and more.

There were several shops to visit, each offering its own craft or hands-on activity where children and their families could customize items to their liking. Some of the shops included carpentry, calligraphy, jewelry, metal crafts, stamping and weaving.

Other activities at the event included a petting pen and the Three Kings Escape Room. The Nativity Scene was the first stop with a live Mary, Joseph and baby Jesus.

The event has become a favorite Christmas tradition in Portland, with hundreds attending over the two nights to make memories with their children.

Event director Rita Taylor told The Portland Sun, “We enjoy doing this for the community! Seeing the children enjoy themselves and be interactive makes it all worth it!”

She went on to say that “with each year, the event gets a little better, a little bigger, and the lines get a little longer thanks to our committee of wonderful people – Dan and Denise Tonn, Diane and Matt Medanich, Jamie and Chris Gregory and John Taylor – who help bring this special night to life!”