By James FitzPatrick
Contributing Writer
There will be a feeling of Christmas in the air when the Charity League of Atlantic County holds its 75th Annual Christmas Mart Nov. 18 and 19 at Greate Bay Country Club in Somers Point.
If you like your Christmas handmade and full of tradition, then the Christmas Mart should be your first stop this holiday shopping season. There you will find heirloom quality Christmas stockings, ornaments, table runners, and tree skirts for sale, all made by women of the Charity League. Homemade cookies, pies, candies and cheese balls will be available for your holiday table. More than 20 vendors will showcase their apparel, woodcrafts, and kids’ toys.
But the star of the show, perhaps more than Santa himself, is the Charity League holiday pin.
More than 5,300 of them have been sequined, sewn, assembled and detailed in preparation for the Christmas Mart by the 40 active and 30 associate members of the Charity League of Atlantic County. If things go according to form, the pin will be sold out by the end of the first day, said Andrea Worrall, Charity League president.
No one outside of the Charity League is supposed to know what the pin design is before mart day. It’s a closely guarded secret, to be revealed when the event opens 10 a.m. Friday, Nov. 18. They’re a popular item with more than half pre-sold to members and people on the mailing list before the doors open.
“There’s always some available to buy on the day of the event,” Worrall said.
Pins are $25, which has held firm for the past decade. It’s a bargain considering that up to five hours of work goes into making one pin.
Each pin comes with a lifetime guarantee. If you have an old pin that needs repair or restoration, you can take it to the mart. A member at the fixings table will take a look and see what can be done.
Despite the effort to maintain secrecy, there is no dramatic reveal moment. Worrall said it’s easy to figure out the design by noticing them pinned to the members’ shirts.
The pins are heirlooms, often passed down from one generation to the next. They’re collectible, especially the older ones which were made in smaller quantities at a time when the felt base had to be cut by hand, the Egg Harbor Township resident said.
Past designs have included snowflakes, ice skates, Christmas lights, mittens and snowmen. There have been Santas, candles, doves and candy canes.
If you have a particular pin you’re looking for, they usually have some old ones at the mart. They also show up at estate sales and on ebay.
Worrall said past favorites have included the snowflake and the original ice skates. The first pin ever was a Christmas tree.
The Charity League of Atlantic County began in 1935, a name change after being founded in 1932 as the Junior Committee of the Atlantic City Day Nursery.
In 1947, the first Christmas Mart was held in a storefront on the corner of Pennsylvania and Atlantic avenues in Atlantic City. The pin made its debut in 1948.
The mart was held in various Atlantic City locations before moving to the Atlantic City Country Club in 1977 and onto its current location, Greate Bay Country Club, in 2007.
Between the mart and other events, the Charity League raises about $150,000 each year in support of charities that help women and children including Avanzar, The Covenant House, Atlantic City Day Nursery, The Center For Family Services, and the Donny Fund.
There are changes this year. In 2020 and 2021 there was a virtual mart due to covid, so this will be the first in-person mart since 2019.
Unlike previous years when tree skirts had to be custom-ordered a year in advance, they will be available on the spot, first come first served.
There will be changes in the baked goods, too.
The good news is there will be 18,000 spritz cookies in 308 tins baked by the members, plus pies and candies. But breads, always a popular item, will not be available.
Worrall said the high cost of ingredients and a lack of available work hours meant the mart favorite had to be eliminated.
She said it’s hard toget enough volunteers.
“A lot of people are willing to give money, but not of their time and it takes time,” she said. “For people to give that much of their time is a little bit unique nowadays.
“There used to be a waiting list years ago to get into Charity League, but that’s not the case anymore.”
The Charity League is always looking for new members.
To join you have to have three members co-sponsor your application. You have to sequin 60 pins, put in 200 volunteer hours per year, and attend seven meetings per year. People from outside of the county can join as long as they meet the criteria.
“Sounds like a lot but it really isn’t,” said Worrall who first joined in 2009, served as president in 2014 and was named president again in 2021.
If you’re interested in joining just inquire at the pin table.
Worrall said they’re a dedicated group of women trying to do good for women and children in the county.
“It’s so worthwhile because of the camaraderie of the women. If somebody’s down or they’re going through sad times or good times, we’re all there for each other, and that’s the most important thing.”
Show hours are 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Friday, Nov. 18; and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 19. Vendors will take credit cards, but the Charity League is cash or check only.
Greate Bay is located at 901 Mays Landing Road in Somers Point.
