EATON — The Preble County Historical Society (PCHS) took a time machine back to the 1950s for their annual holiday dinners. The society hosted a Really Retro Christmas on Friday, Dec. 1 and Saturday, Dec. 2. The event was a fundraiser for the society.
Not only did they raise funds through ticket sales, but also through the Olde Schoolhouse Winery and a silent auction that was hosted in the Sayler-Swartsel House. At time of press, total raised was not yet known.
The night started with music and appetizers in the Lewisburg Log House, before guests moved over for dinner and the auction. As guests arrived in the dark, they travelled down the path that was lighted by lanterns. As they got closer to the Log House, a bag pipe player welcomed them.
The Society was decked out in holiday spirit, putting the guests in a jolly mood before they event started dinner. 1950s attire was not only allowed, but was thoroughly encouraged.
Every year there is a different theme for the party, according to Executive Director Misti Spillman, this year’s theme was inspired by the large amount of 1950s artifacts that PCHS has.
“This year we did a 1950s theme, so we decorated the house and encouraged our guests to dress up in 1950s attire,” she said. “We actually just had a lot of 1950s artifacts and textiles in our collections, so we decided it would be really cool to do something retro and different this year for our dinners.”
Not only is the dress-up factor a draw, but Historical Society board members also serve as waiters for the night, so you might find yourself getting served salad or wine by your favorite PCHS board member.
Spillman explained, “This is a fundraiser for the historical society. We put the funds towards every day maintenance or certain things that goes back into our collections and so forth. Our main goal for this year was just to get people to come out to the Historical Society, which was successful, because we had a lot of people show up both nights.
“This is really just a way for us to kick off the holiday season for everybody, since this is the first weekend in December. We did good with ticket sales. We had about 36 people on Friday night and 32 on Saturday.”
The funds raised through ticket sales will be combined with silent auction funds for the total amount raised.
Spillman added that she was thankful to everyone who donated, attended the event, and volunteered their time.
