News Photo by Kayla Wikaryasz Alpena’s Rosa May-Heck poses for a photo in front of her cherished Christmas village.

ALPENA — Rosa May-Heck, a resident of Alpena and immigrant from Germany, has kept a tradition of constructing a Christmas village in her living room since winning the pieces in a church raffle about six to seven years ago.

May-Heck constructs her village and displays it on tables in her living room with her Christmas tree as the centerpiece and an accompanying nativity scene. She said that it takes about a week to 10 days to complete the set-up.

She said that she starts pulling tubs into the living room, where she keeps all the village pieces, in November but waits till December to begin the construction.

“I wait till the first of December,” she said, smiling.

She explained that her family enjoys the tradition and looks forward to seeing it every year. She said that it is something that she is proud of and makes her happy, like planting flowers in the spring and summer.

May-Heck said that her favorite pieces of the Christmas village collection are the ones from Germany she’s added, which are hand carved. Her house is also decorated with German wall hangings, clocks, and she has created a “German corner” in her kitchen she can enjoy year-round.

She explained that World War II ended when she was three or four years old and immigrated to the United States when she was a young mother at 21 years old with her husband. She said she didn’t know much English, but learned some while watching American movies.

May-Heck explained that in Germany, it was tradition to wait till Christmas Eve to put up their Christmas tree, as Christmas Eve marked the end of Advent season. She said that she grew up poor, so they would receive homemade gifts, such as knitted items, for presents.

She also explained that attending church was important for the Christmas season, while growing up in Germany. She said that her family would walk to church for Christmas Eve service.

“Midnight mass, that was a big thing when I grew up,” she said. “We had about a half hour to walk to the church.”

She said that people in her village would light lanterns to guide the way to the church.

May-Heck explained that in Germany, the Christmas season is celebrated from Christmas Eve till Jan. 6. They also celebrate St. Nicholas Day on Dec. 6, when St. Nicholas visits homes of children and leaves them chocolates, small toys, or nuts in their boots.

Clean boots, of course.

Kayla Wikaryasz can be reached at 989-358-5688 or kwikaryasz@TheAlpenaNews.com.