Article submitted by Jordan Kabat, Vice-President, Manitowoc Aluminum Kitschmas Inc.
‘Tis the season, as they say, and this year marks the tenth such season for Evergleam aluminum Christmas trees being featured in windows throughout Downtown Manitowoc.
Since the event was first devised in 2015, “Evergleams on Eighth” has evolved and grown—more businesses participate than ever before and a whole group of collectors now has the chance to showcase their trees, with nearly 200 on display this year. Much of this success can be directly attributed to a partnership formed with Manitowoc Public Library, which affords opportunities for large-scale displays and greater public engagement.
Over the years, programming on pertinent topics was added to compliment the displays—first Sparkle!: The History of Aluminum Trees, then a virtual version during the 2020 COVID pandemic. Sometime after I joined up with the “Gleam Team,” a restoration clinic called “Paging Dr. Evergleam” came into being. And the Virtual Sparkle Event turned into a sort of interview show where the hosts—Barb Bundy-Jost and myself—interviewed individuals with first-person accounts of factory life at Aluminum Specialty Company during the years of tree production (1959-1972) . . . sort of an original cast reunion.
If you know me, you know I always try to keep things fresh. Every season, I play a primary role in planning-out what all of the window displays at each of the businesses will look like. And every year, I try to make them look a little bit different. The same can be said for the library displays, and maybe now the programming, too.
Since we’ve done the same sort of format for our virtual “Sparkle” interview show for several years now, we thought we would shake things up a little for our Ten-Year Anniversary. The displays in Downtown Manitowoc highlight trees mostly supplied by six collectors. We do, however, have many friends who also have trees and collections of their own that, due primarily to proximity reasons, don’t get to participate in our event.
Thus, we thought, why not show off more trees and hear some collector stories during our virtual show this year? By going in this direction, we would be able to showcase trees in their “natural environment”—the homes of their owners. We’d also get to hear all sorts of interesting personal anecdotes. So, during Virtual Sparkle!: The History of Aluminum Trees this time around, we’ll have participants from all across the country showing off their favorite pieces and much of what we’ll see will never have been exhibited to the public before. It’ll be a special extension of this season’s “Evergleams on Eighth” displays and if you love the Sparkle, you definitely do not want to miss this!
So, if you can make it to the library for Sparkle!: The History of Aluminum Trees, we’ll see you at 6 PM on Thursday, December 4, right by the Enchanted Evergleams at MPL. Otherwise, tune in to Manitowoc Public Library’s Facebook page (www.facebook.com/manitowoclibrary) or YouTube channel for Virtual Sparkle!: The History of Aluminum Trees on Thursday, December 18, at 5 PM.
Either way, the Sparkle is sure to dazzle!