The Hallmark vibes were in full effect this past weekend in Oakdale.

As Small Town Christmas expanded, Downtown Christmas returned for the 17th year and the Annual Christmas Parade made its way downtown for the ninth time, there was simply no denying the Christmas spirit is alive and well in Oakdale.

While each of these things have been celebrated over the course of the past several years, it was the addition of the Julia Haidlen Memorial Ice Skating Rink which served as the bow on top of this perfectly curated gift.

This would be the space where I geek out a bit as the local journalist quite honestly proud of her town.

It’s hard to completely express the feeling of magic one feels when entering the memorial ice rink. One can’t help but feel transported onto the set of yes, a Hallmark movie, as you walk upon the lights, the decorations and the smiling faces with Christmas music bumping in the background.

I’ve shared before, the thing I love most about this job is the front seat view we seem to be treated to in the spirit of our “job.” We must after all serve the community in a timely and accurate way. Often times, that means sitting in the company of some visionary, go getters who candidly share their dreams and visions of an ultimate goal.

What impressed me most about the Julia Haidlen Rink was shared recently on live television by Channel 10’s Mark S. Allen, as he referred to the rink as a “Stone Soup,” making mention of all the community involvement to make the magic happen.

He could not have been more spot on.

Over the course of the last several weeks we’ve run the quotes of a few of the key players, many of you have seen the flood of posts on social media celebrating every step of the opening and again, the committee members who brought the vision to life.

The true beauty of it, however, is quite bigger than the dream realized and the aesthetic home run. What I love about the Julia Haidlen Ice Rink is the poetic nod of not only many hands making for light work, but the generational impact.

“Community” is alive and well in Oakdale.

A few days prior to the official opening I did what most reporters do, I crashed the rink and was treated to an impromptu tour by key committee member Danielle Sanders. As Sanders walked me through the rink from back to front, she was gracious enough to point out things which were donated by the community.

The rink of course (for those unaware) was the longtime dream of Ami Poncabare, thrown into accelerated realization by Gretchen Arbini and Erich Haidlen as a way of honoring their mother.

As I toured with Sanders this multi-generation element was echoed again as she pointed out the picnic tables lent by Sons Farm Fresh and the benches built by her dad, Larry Sanders. Then as we turned a corner was the beautiful red sleigh loaned by the Stueve family. Their late father Lloyd was known for his love of wagons and once used to tour people around in a horse drawn wagon along with Santa during the Downtown Christmas event.

Situated just feet from the beautiful sleigh is the Bloomingcamp Bake Shop truck, owned by Lloyd’s daughter and son-in-law Betsy and Jake Townsend. The sight of the two, choked me up.

I adored Lloyd, just as I did Julia. Each of them had a way of making a girl like me feel as if what I do matters. Julia was always one to shoot a random e-mail, often offering feedback to a column. Simple stuff really: an atta girl when I shared my weight loss, gratitude for volunteer efforts or simple shared thoughts echoing my own. Lloyd was a man who immediately made me feel like family from first meeting. As years passed, he held a special place in my heart and I can honestly say, I his.

Community members like these are real jewels and I feel grateful for the private memories they have blessed me with. Just people being people really, but connection all the same which truly fills my cup.

Then amongst everything else are the trees throughout the rink thanks to Rodin Farms, The Fruit Stand. The list of course goes on, but these were a few of the things which not just struck me, but made me proud.

It amazes me really. To look at this wonderment, that is appreciated by the stranger but is such a beautiful testament to how this community shows up and makes magic happen.

Sure, checks were written, lots and lots of checks were written but it is truly so much bigger than that.

As I reflect and think about the Christmas magic, which is now our town it’s so much more than a Hallmark movie. In actuality it’s a beautiful Hallmark card carefully written by a community of multiple generations and businesses coming together in the name of love … for community.

Merry Christmas.

Teresa Hammond is a staff reporter for The Oakdale Leader, The Riverbank News and The Escalon Times. She may be reached at thammond@oakdaleleader.com or by calling 209-847-3021.