Seniors deck the hall for festive fun
17 July 2025
Graham and Joan present a song as part of our Good Company seniors group's Christmas in July event in 2025. The other image is one of the table settings for the day.
Christmas in July celebrations and celebrating Christmas in July are quite different things if you really think about it.
The "real Christmas" is really one day – December 25 each year – when the Christian world celebrates the birth of Christ. Just as we in Australia celebrate the King's birthday not on King Charles III's actual birth day so December 25 is not Jesus' actual birthdate.
One of the table settings for the Good Company Christmas in July function.
The "real Christmas" is really one day – December 25 each year – when the Christian world celebrates the birth of Christ. Just as we in Australia celebrate the King's birthday not on King Charles III's actual birth day so December 25 is not Jesus' actual birthdate.
Anyway, Christmas has become rather a "commercial season" than a religious one for a majority of the world these days. Shops and businesses cash in on that focus, decking their places of business with all manner of "Christmas" items to attract the buyer . . . so why Christmas in July.
Some of the 45 people at our Good Company Christmas in July event waiting for the meal to be served.
There are many theories why and how the idea began but, basically, it's hot when the countries such as Australia celebrate Christmas in December so the notion of a white Christmas is quite foreign – pardon the pun.– so having a "commercial Christmas" in July, when its at its coldest in Australia, seemed a good idea.
With that background, The Salvation Army's Stafford corps' seniors group, Good Company, held a Christmas in July event on Saturday, July 12 - with all the trimmings.
About 45 attended and were challenged by a Christmas quiz, listened to a musical presentation from Graham and Joan (on the piano accordion) and a short message on origins of Christmas in July from Major Ian.
No figgy pudding here. Seniors attending our Good Company Christmas In July function dig in to Yuletide Yummies including a lovely ham.
Reporter "on the spot", Janelle, said it was a happy time of socialising and a long afternoon chat on a perfect winter’s day.
> Thanks to Jennifer & Kevin Smith for organising & attention to detail; Paul & Audrey for cooking and other helpers.
Without crediting anyone with having been the first to have a "Christmas in July" occasion, we'll go with the thought that it began in the Blue Mountains of New South Wales in the 1980s where a group of visitors were reminded of cold and snowy Christmases in their home country and were inspired to have a festive celebration in July.
Major Ian, in his talk, said the introduction of the concept in Australia is cretied to a group of Irish tourists staying at a Blue Maou8ntains guesthouse in the 1980s and "pined for the cozy, wintry Christmases of Ireland".
"Inspired by the chilly July weather, they convinced their hosts to throw a Christmas celebration complete with traditional food, decorations and carols," Major Ian said. "The idea quickly caught on and soon venues across the Blue Mountains, and later all of NSW, began hosting their own 'Christmas in July' festivities."
North of the equator, the thought is that the concept was a tad more commercial having emerged from a mix of theatrical and promotional events, with the idea given "currency" through various activities.
In the Northern Hemisphere,1892 French opera, Werther, included a scene where children rehearsing a Christmas carol in July, prompted a character to remark: "When you sing Christmas in July, you rush the season".
Major Ian said it was believed the Christmas in July concept began in America in 1915 by the Long Island Good Hearted Thespians Society (LIGHTS). That was a group of vaudeville actors which usually worked through December, away from their families, and began celebrating the holiday when they were on their summer break.
He said a Miss Fannie Holt ran a girl’s camp in North Carolina and thought it would be an exciting way to mark the end of summer at the camp by commemorating Christmas in July. The girls sang carols, decorated a tree and had a secret Santa.
A romantic comedy movie Christmas in July, was released in 1940 helped give the idea traction, too. It was about a neighbourhood that was transformed by an early Christmas. A character in the comedy mistakenly believes he had won a contest and celebrates Christmas early.
Later, retailers and greeting card companies embraced Christmas in July as a way to boost sales during the summer months, capitalising on the festive spirit and the desire to get a head start on holiday shopping.
Major Ian suggested then, there were two purposes for Christmas in July:
To enjoy the food eaten in the Northern Hemisphere at Christmas time when, for many in the Southern Hemisphere, it is too hot to prepare and eat roast lamb, chicken or ham, and pudding with hot custard.
"Second, though probably not the purpose of the originators, Christmas in July renews the spirit of Christmas half-way through the year. There may not be a focus on the birth of Jesus but Christmas in July gather reminds us of family, generosity and love.
Thanks go to Jennifer and Kevin for organising the event and their attention to detail, to Paul and Audrey for cooking and all the other helpers.