Written by MELISSA JACKSON | Photography courtesy of BETH NEELY
Paige Payton and Jennie Freeman, both of Newnan, commemorate their travels each Christmas with ornaments reminding them of the places they've visited.
“It started when my husband and I were dating in 1991,” recalls Paige “Our first ornament was from the Biltmore.”
That was 132 ornaments ago. Since that trip, Paige’s Christmas collection has grown richer with every adventure and every memory – and her passion for collecting holiday ornaments has become a central theme of her life.
“We call her our cruise director,” says Jennie. “She plans everything out, and we’re like, ‘Okay, let's go.’”
Like Paige, Jennie enjoys the ornament collecting aspect of their trips. Between the two, they’ve collected nearly 300 ornaments, and most of those have been purchased while on an adventure together.
“We really heated up when we started traveling with Paige and Allan,” says Jennie, whose husband, Banks Freeman also joins the fun.
At first it was the occasional extended vacation together, starting with a Caribbean cruise. Five years ago, the couples began traveling together one weekend a month with Paige leading the way.
“I'll search out restaurants, museums, hotels, and we'll go,” she says.
Sometimes the couples go for a day trip, but they’ve also taken international trips. Once on a cruise to Alaska, the couples rented a car just to cross the border into Canada and buy ornaments.
“We even went to the Red Dog Saloon, and they had an ornament,” Paige says of the famous bar established during Alaska’s Gold Rush.
When Paige and Jennie encounter a destination without an ornament, Paige resorts to plan B.
“Not every place has ornaments,” she laments, “so sometimes I'll buy a magnet or a keychain, anything I can find, just to hang on my tree to remember that visit.”
When they traveled deep into the woods of Cherokee, Ala., to visit the Coon Dog Cemetery, Paige made an ornament from photographs to document the journey. The Coon Dog Cemetery, established in 1937, is home to over 300 coon dog memorials and even has its own road: Coon Dog Cemetery Road.
The ladies are relentless in their search.
“Once we were in Savannah at Bonaventure Cemetery,” Jennie recalls. Undaunted by the stately grounds with memorials dating back to the 18th century, Jennie and Paige asked, “Do you have any ornaments?”
They laugh, remembering the response: “This old man looks up over his glasses and says, ‘Ma’am, you realize this is a cemetery?’”
I Sometimes the seekers have better luck. While visiting Amelia Island, they found an estate sale offering a full set of the annual presidential ornaments. They bought a few the first day, and went back on half-price day to buy the rest. They both agree that the ornaments in the presidential
collection are among the most beautiful they own.
Paige’s personal favorite is a depiction of the Pretty Place Chapel, an open air mountainside chapel at the YMCA camp in Greenville, S.C.
“I told my husband I wanted to see it, so we went but couldn't get an ornament since it's just a mountainside view,” says Paige. “Later that summer, they announced a small run of ornaments for sale. It sold out fast, and they had to do another run.”
Maybe Bonaventure and the Coon Dog Cemetery should reconsider their ornament options.
“Most people, when they go somewhere,” says Jennie, “want something nice to put out. Paige and I just want our ornaments. We don’t need anything else.”
“That's the thing about my ornaments,” agrees Paige. “I'll pull one out and recall, ‘Oh, remember how much it rained?’ or ‘This was so hot.’ The memories are attached.” NCM
A few locations where the friends have collected ornaments:
• Biltmore Estate, Asheville, N.C.
• The Caribbean, a cruise in 2002
• Coon Dog Cemetery, Cherokee, Ala.
• The Lost Sea, Sweetwater, Tenn.
• Greenville and Hilton Head, S.C.
• Highlands and Cashiers, N.C.
• Bonaventure Cemetery, Cathedral of St. John the Baptist and Wormsloe Plantation, Savannah, Ga.
• Amelia Island, Fla. at a presidential ornament estate sale
• Tail of the Dragon, Tenn./N.C. border motorcycle path
• Freedom Trail, USS Constitution, Old North Church, Boston, Mass.
• Rhode Island
• Kennebunkport, Portland and Freeport, Maine
• Alaska cruise, spotlighting Ketchikan and Red Dog Saloon
• Carcross, Yukon, Canada
• Ark Encounter, Williamstown, Ky.
• Kentucky Derby Museum and Louisville Slugger Museum, Louisville, Ky.
• Gibbs Gardens, Ball Ground, Ga.
• Pretty Place Chapel (YMCA Camp Greenville) — Greenville, S.C.
• Civil War Battlefield, Gettysburg, Penn.
• North Georgia
• Numerous Civil War battlefields, from Newnan to Virginia
