ERWIN, Tenn. — In recent years, the women who run Heartfelt Florist in Erwin have had the job — or, as they put it, the privilege — of decorating the legendary Santa Train before it heads north to deliver gifts to the children of Appalachia, the Erwin Record reported.
As usual, the train will make its annual trek this week to the CSX Transportation Inc. facility in Erwin, where it will be cleaned and decorated. Then it will pull out Friday morning in preparation for its 110-mile journey the following day through remote portions of Kentucky, Virginia and Tennessee.
This will be the fifth consecutive year that Heartfelt Florist, operated by Margaret Seward, Doreen Parkey and Lisa Slemons, has been hired to provide decorations for the eight train cars used by Santa’s helpers and assorted VIPs.
The first year, Michael Kennedy, manager of business car operations with CSX in Jacksonville, Fla., walked into the shop unannounced and asked if they could have it decorated by the next morning.
Seward recalled that they were able to pull off the minor miracle, using whatever plants and flowers they could come up with on such short notice, by working all night.
These days, the women have a little longer to plan for the big event, but most of the work still must be done at the last minute so the floral decorations will be fresh.
The task awaiting them this year includes providing two decorated Christmas trees, two 30-foot garlands for the dining cars, 41 arrangements for dining tables and 12 centerpieces for main tables in the various cars.
Each year, Heartfelt follows a slightly different theme for its decorations without straying too far from what the train is all about — Santa Claus.
One of this year’s trees will be adorned primarily with Santa-related objects. The other will have a country theme, for which the florist shop has stocked up on handmade birdhouses, rope ribbons and similar decorations.
On Thursday, Seward, Parkey and Slemons will complete arrangements in a flurry, with the help of family members they are able to recruit. CSX officials always put heavy emphasis on fresh arrangements featuring poinsettias, which provide challenges to the florists.
“A poinsettia is one of the hardest plants to work with when it’s fresh cut,” Seward said, “because of the white liquid inside. Where it’s clipped, you have to burn it until the white stops running and then immediately put it in water.”
Although most of the work is done in the florist shop, the staff is allowed onto the train in the evening to decorate the trees and hang the garlands. The day’s work usually isn’t finished until the wee hours of the morning. Last year, it was done at about 2 a.m.
After a very few hours of rest, it’s back on the job at 6 a.m. Friday so that a 7 a.m. deadline for having all decorations in place on the train can be met.
“We’re tired while doing it, but when it’s all over, we feel that it’s been a real privilege,” Seward said. “We love being involved. It’s an honor to be part of the Santa Train, which is for such a good cause.”
Slemons said the project ranks right up there with Valentine’s Day and weddings in terms of stress and strain, “but it’s a lot more fun than weddings.”
The three women said they especially enjoy getting to go onto the Santa Train, and they hope they will be invited to take the trip through Appalachia one of these years.
This Saturday’s trip will mark the train’s 60th anniversary. It is a joint effort of CSX and the Kingsport Area Chamber of Commerce, who have collected more than 15 tons of gifts to be distributed at 13 stops along the route.
Parkey, who is called the group’s “organizer” by her partners at Heartfelt Florist, handles most of the arrangements with CSX for the shop’s role in transforming the Santa Train’s interior into a work of holiday art.
“The people from CSX have been extremely nice,” Parkey said, “and always are willing to do anything they can to help. They’re a good bunch to work for.”