Behind the scenes: Volunteers bring Walnut Creek’s Journey to Bethlehem to life

The making of Journey to Bethlehem in Walnut Creek Dec. 5-6 takes an inordinate amount of preparation and work.

There are so many details involved in creating this special Christmas event that focuses on the birth of Jesus and so many people that it takes months of coordination to get everything in order.

First, the town of Walnut Creek and the surrounding area is lined with thousands of luminarias, gallon plastic jugs donated by Hillcrest Orchard that are filled with sand and a candle.

Area Amish teens are committed to filling the jugs with sand and lighting and then blowing out the candles every night, an extraordinary task considering the luminarias extend east of town to Elite Flooring and southeast all the way to The Farm in Walnut Creek, nearly a full mile out of town.

Maps of the tour for both the town and The Farm are created, giving visitors a roadmap to the journey.

Then there were the characters portraying the variety of people including the wisemen, shepherds in the fields, angels singing praise, and Mary and Joseph. Even the marketplace at Coblentz Chocolate was alive with the sounds of characters dressed up and peddling their wares, begging and cajoling people to buy their merchandise.

James and Ruth Mullet were dressed in shepherd clothing ad had a roaring fire going outside Elite Flooring, the first stop on the tour that greeted guests making the journey.

Knowing this endeavor takes countless volunteers, they wanted to be a part of something meaningful.

“We felt this was something we could do to help the community and to help portray the story of the birth of Jesus,” James Mullet said. "We enjoy greeting people and making them feel welcome.”

One bad-tempered character in the biblical story is Herod, the king who demanded to know the whereabouts of this supposed new king.

Visitors to his station, in which he was purposefully guarded by a pair of Roman guards as he sat on his thrown, were treated to a less than hospitable king who was teetering on the edge of jealousy as he maddeningly sought to confront this new king he felt threatened his crown.

That angry king was played by Eddie Regan, who has portrayed the jealous king since the very beginning of the event 16 years ago.

While he portrays a bad guy, his spirit of promoting the story of faith and Christ is anything but that.

“I think the reason I keep doing this is because it is an incredible ministry in sharing the story of Jesus,” Regan said. “It’s exciting to continue to share a story that some people may have never heard and to retell it in a unique and interesting way for those who have heard it.”

At Coblentz Chocolate the marketplace was abuzz with activity, and as people exited the tunnel of chattering actors, store owner Jason Coblentz and his wife handed out chocolate to visitors as they passed through.

Coblentz has been involved with this production since its infancy, and the marketplace has helped set a tone of authenticity to the entirety of each evening.

He said years ago Amy Yoder, a local resident whose Light in the Valley Church used to offer the presentation, came to him with the idea of having this event in Walnut Creek and expanding it so others would be invited to join.

Since then it has blossomed into an event that draws thousands to the area.

“We’ve been blessed to continue to remain loyal to the same truths and story that the church started years ago,” Coblentz said. “We as a company really cherished the outreach part of being involved with this.”

He said recreating a marketplace that give people some insight into exactly what it was like in Bethlehem thousands of years ago is intriguing because he said some of the people coming through the tour may not be churched, others may be somewhat knowledgeable, and others may be seeking encouragement on their faith journey or simply want to recapture the essence of the story.

He said each stop along the journey adds to the story of the birth of Christ, layering it as people take the journey.

“This event brings in people of all walks of life,” he said. “Our hope is to bring the story to life in a meaningful way.”