Bow Island’s live Nativity open on December 18 & 19 

Posted on December 11, 2025 by Ryan Dahlman

By Nerissa McNaughton
Southern Alberta Newspapers

Get ready Bow Island! A very special holiday season performance is coming your way this month. It’s an interfaith live Nativity on December 18 and 19. The show runs every 30 minutes from 6:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. at the multiplex (1040 2nd Street East). Admission is free for this 12 minute show. During breaks between shows, people can go indoors to warm up and have hot chocolate and donuts while socializing.

 The man behind the performance is Russell Hillyer.

“I was participating in the community carol festival at the Catholic Church,” he explains when asked for his inspiration for organizing the show. “My daughters had joined the children’s choir. I love the Christian unity that I feel during that event, but we are still separated into our groups. I wanted to do something where people from the different churches weren’t just attending the same event, but were working side by side in a united cause. In His intercessory prayer, Christ prayed that we would be One in Him as He is One with the Father. I hope that at Christmas time, we can allow ourselves to put away some of our tribalism and treat each other the way he taught us to and to be One in Christ.”

Hillyer built the set and received the materials by donation from a generous local store.

“The set is very basic. I built it and wanted it to be easy to dismantle and store. The problem is that I’m not a very talented builder! If anyone comes and thinks they can do a better job, they are welcome to do so,” he laughs.

The highlight of the show is the animals.

“The animals are quite social and their keepers are part of the group and will be present,” says Hillyer. “At the show you can ask the keepers if they are ok to let you touch the animals. That being said, unattended animals should not be handled, and they will need to warm up between shows.”

On the Thursday night, the names of the donkeys that will be present are Rosie and Bella, and the sheep are adorably named Woollie Nelson and Tricia Ewewood.

Hillyer personally wishes the best of the holidays for everyone. He concludes by sharing his personal beliefs about the season: “The Christmas message is one about hope, joy, peace, and love. Christmas is for sharing time and love with family and friends. Christmas is about celebrating the birth of Jesus in Bethlehem. It isn’t just about the wise men and the angels and the shepherds. It is not just a cute story to tell our children or to have them re-enact. The Christmas story is a reminder that on that night, God, in his love, fulfilled his promise; the Savior was born so that whosoever would believe in Him would not perish, but have everlasting life. This is my hope. This is the love that we have received, and we have the promise of peace on Earth one day. For me, Christmas is about the joy that I have that on that first Christmas, salvation was given to the world and to me.”