Christmas 2025: Beyersbergen-Oakes gets crafty at Christmas

BY SHAWN LOUGHLIN

If you get a Christmas gift from Lillian Beyersbergen-Oakes, this year’s Huron County Plowing Match Princess and a staple of the Santa Claus parade circuit, chances are that it has her fingerprints all over it.

 

The crafty artist is always busy on something, whether it’s a painting or something a little more traditional to the craft world, around the holidays and it’s her friends and family who benefit most greatly from not just her creativity and abilities, but from her generosity.

 

Christmases are pretty traditional for Beyersbergen-Oakes. She spends time with family and friends and relishes visits with grandparents and extended family on all sides of the family tree - a staple of every holiday season for her.

 

For years, they alternated between Christmas Day and Boxing Day, ensuring that everyone had their time to get together for Christmas. Her father passed away in 2023 and getting together with his side of the family was always essential. It continues to be that way, even though her family has expanded to include her new stepfather’s side of the family as well. There is always time for everyone around the holidays.

 

This comes after a move to the Bluevale area, where the family currently resides. Some of the gatherings are big and others are a little smaller, but they’re all part of the holidays for Beyersbergen-Oakes.

 

While Beyersbergen-Oakes isn’t overly focused on the role that gifts play in the holiday experience, there is one gift that she received from her parents not so long ago that has proven to be a big part of her life. A few years ago she found an easel under the tree and that has been a fantastic gift that she’s put to use on plenty of occasions.

 

She says that she absolutely loves it and uses it all the time now. She has created paintings that she’s gifted to family and friends, she’s exhibited in student art shows through her school and as part of the annual Student Show at the Blyth Festival Art Gallery and she’s even done a live painting installation at a special night for her school at F.E. Madill School in Wingham.

 

So, bringing those creative and artistic sensibilities to the holidays, Beyersbergen-Oakes says she’s always busy in the lead-up to Christmas because she’s creating gifts for her friends and family. That is especially true this Christmas as she’s now a staple of the Santa Claus parade schedule throughout Huron County, representing the Huron Plowmen’s Association and the Huron County Plowing Match on the main (freezing cold) stage throughout the holidays. She’s been in Clinton, Wingham and Blyth, joined at times by Gracie Hoggarth, this year’s Huron County Queen of the Furrow.

 

She says it hasn’t eaten into her craft- and art-making time too much, but that it’s been great to connect with the community from the other side of the parade - being part of such an undeniable tradition and bringing holiday cheer to the communities of Huron County has been a great honour, she says, and one that she truly loves and for which she feels grateful.