Experiencing L.A. at Christmas

Just a few photos (with links) on how we as a family celebrated Christmas the five years we lived in Los Angeles:

Above is one of the outdoor public Nativity Scenes in Santa Monica. Unfortunately the fourteen displays are now down to just two thanks to a small but determined group of non-residents who want to rain on others' parades. Talk about "the Grinch Who Stole Christmas." Curious to see what 2012 looks like ... and how churches in Santa Monica respond.

The Salvation Army, Compton. Our extended family made it a point to take a Saturday before Christmas an help out and serve in the community. The Salvation Army does a fantastic job meeting both the physical and spiritual needs of men, women, and children. Here's a link to their website, with an opportunity to give financially.

Downtown on Ice. Every year we went ice skating on December 23rd in downtown Los Angeles at Pershing Square with extended family. If you're in Los Angeles, or just visiting, it's a fun experience.

For our family, and millions of others around the world, Jesus Christ remains the central focus of Christmas. We so appreciated the annual "Back to Bethlehem" event sponsored by The Church at Rocky Peak in Chatsworth. It was simply amazing. It's a free event that attracts 18,000 people every year - and we can not recommend it enough. Here's a link to their website.

Speaking of Christmas, which is tomorrow, here's a sneak peak of the US Postal Service's religiously themed Christmas stamp for 2012.

Wow, nice. Really like it. Thanks, US Postal.

And Merry Christmas.

© 2011 www.experiencingla.com

Merry Christmas from Compton

This past Saturday morning we had the opportunity to spend a few hours helping out at the Salvation Army in Compton.


The Salvation Army has an excellent long-term presence in the community ... committed to meeting spiritual and physical needs of literally thousands of individuals and families in the immediate area. (Looks like the recent wind and rain did some work to their sign out front.)


Saturday was the big Christmas outreach, providing food and Christmas presents to several hundred needy families.

Captains Martin and Tory Ross provide leadership to the ministry. Here Tory is sharing a few words (being translated into Spanish) beforehand about some of the resources the Compton Salvation Army offers the community.

Martin - who who is very conversational in Spanish - decided to have his Christmas message translated as well. Compton is a community in transition, with a huge, growing Latino community.


The facility was packed!


Volunteers from other churches came out to help staff the event. A group came down from a Micronesian Church in Pasadena. Very cool.


This little girl is playing the part of Santa Claus for her family!

Volunteers helping families carry Christmas gifts and food boxes out.

We've helped out here before, but this year we thought about getting involved in something closer to home. Someone reminded us that social-service organizations on the westside of Los Angeles generally are better resourced that those in South Los Angeles. Make sense, they're simply around foundations, businesses, organization, and individuals that are better able to give. So, at the invitation of those in Compton, we once again drove on down to see how we could help.


A highlight for us was the opportunity to bring our kids. Living in Los Angeles we're exposed to extremes of both wealth and poverty. We appreciate the chance for them to see and serve alongside the Salvation Army for a couple of hours. My son (9) played the role of a snowman, greeting kids and parents at the door. He was a real trooper - that suit got pretty hot pretty quick. This is the third year we've tried some sort of Christmas service project, and it only gets easier as our kids get older.

Here's the link for the Salvation Army Compton's website: http://www.salvationarmy-compton.org/. There are opportunities to get involved, or to invest financially in the the work.

A huge thank you - and Merry Christmas - to Captains Martin and Tory Ross and their team, and for the ongoing impact they're making here in Los Angeles.