Mill District Residents Adapt a Houseful of Holiday Cheer to Condo-sized Christmas Wonderland

Article and photos by Becky Fillinger

What to do if you really, really love decorating for the holidays but you’ve moved from a large single family home in the Maplewood suburbs to a Mill District condo? You learn to curate your collection to fit your new space – and do it with panache!

Randy Goetz, now a resident at The Legacy, grew up in Halliday, N.D. In the late 50s early 60s, the North Dakota prairie town of a few hundred people strung colored lights from street lamp to street lamp. Randy’s father built a large wooden star decorated with blue C9 bulbs for display outside the home. Randy took over tree and other interior decoration duties in the 5th grade. “I remember the decorating as a time of family engagement – Dad and I could bond over our plans for the holiday season."  

Jump forward to Randy’s home in Maplewood in the 1990s. He would put up three 7-foot fully decorated trees, and every room would be tastefully decked out for Christmas. He would begin decorating the Friday before Thanksgiving and it would take three full days to finish. Moving to the Bridgewater Lofts 10 years ago presented a dilemma for Randy. It was necessary to cull his collection by half. A subsequent move to The Legacy required another downsizing. As a result, this year it took Randy only 4 hours to decorate, but the outcome is still spectacular.

In addition to a beautiful white flocked Christmas tree with red decorations, his display this year includes Christopher Radko bottle brush trees, vintage tulle and aluminum trees, Gurley candles and a fresh advent wreath. Randy prefers vintage ornaments to mass produced items – finding many of them online at Etsy and eBay. Organic, fresh floral arrangements are also on display throughout the holidays. 

Why does he continue the traditions? “It makes me feel good. I have wonderful memories of decorations in my childhood and later on in my adult homes, and even going to Minneapolis to look at Dayton’s displays.” Randy and his husband, Kevin, have another Christmas tradition. They make cookies, and a lot of them.  This year cookie day was December 6, during which 22 varieties were baked for a grand total of 1,314 Christmas cookies!

How do you celebrate the winter holidays? Do you have long-standing traditions you'd like to share with Mill City Times readers? Let us know via our Facebook page.