The Grinch is paying a visit to Sparwood this Christmas.
Visitors to Sparwood’s Greenwood will see that the Grinch and lots of characters from the much-loved story by Dr. Seuss have taken up residence.
It’s all thanks to the work of Karen Sturek and a team of dedicated volunteers who put in days of work to put together a colourful Grinch-themed backdrop for kids and families to take photos in front of over the Christmas season.
“Our kids have to have some sort of normality,” said Sturek, who painted the backdrop for the mall as a way for families to take Christmas photos given that traditional Santa mall visits are hard to pull off during a pandemic.
Sturek has been brought in to decorate the Greenwood Mall by the Mall Merchants for the Christmas season for the last eight years, and says that she does it for the kids.
“Seeing the kids when they come in, all excited that the decorations are going up… that’s rewarding.”
The Grinch-themed backdrop is a new addition to the mall decorations, and Sturek said she was inspired to put it together by her five-year-old grandson, who loves the Grinch.
Sturek put in “days and days” of work painting the backdrop, with the whole setting including presents, snow, lines from the story and lots of familiar characters from the story.
“I am dedicated to my communities,” she said.
Sturek was joined by Rick Sturek, Pat Kozler, Terra Gauthier, Dustin Sturek and Taylor Foreman in putting up all the decorations at the mall, which includes a painting by Pat Kozler, new Santa decorations and more.
“It’s a lot of fun, decorating the mall,” said Sturek.
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