The story of the toy exhibition and collection that began with a child’s letter to Santa

CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — Remember a few weeks ago when we visited a Clarksville home with a pirate ship in their front yard?

They were a family’s Halloween decorations. We had to know what they had done for Christmas. Turns out it’s quite a story, too.

The house on Raven Road in Clarksville is decorated with towering nutcrackers, lights, inflatable snowmen and more.

Neighbor Harrison, 9 years old, knows the history of the place.

“Did you do all this yourself?” I asked him.

“No, Mr. B did it,” he smiles.

Who is Mr. B? This is the owner Bionner Puerta.

“I love it,” he says, looking at his work. “The kids just start screaming ‘YEEEAH!'”

“The whole exhibit takes about three weeks to put together,” said Bionner’s wife, Jennifer Pierce. “It’s always, ‘Did you do all that?’ Yeah, that’s why we’re called Handmade Holidays on Raven It’s always “wow!”

“My neighbor is offering me his garden now, so I’m going to move that way!” Bionner laughs.

It’s a team effort. Jennifer decorates and Bionner’s carpentry skills learned in the military come into play.

“Last year I called him Clark Griswold because that’s where we are at this point,” Jennifer said.

“What’s your favorite part?” I asked Harrison.

“Probably the sleigh, just so everyone can go take pictures,” he replied.

As huge as it all is today, it all started three years ago with a small outdoor Letters to Santa decoration. One morning, neighbor Harrison ran in and dropped off a letter.

“Do you remember what you asked Santa Claus for?” I asked him.

“I really liked this book series called ‘Wrenly’s Kingdom,'” he replied. “It’s about this prince and all the adventures he goes through. He has a pet dragon called Ruskin. I wanted a dragon like him, and that’s what I got from Santa.”

That little letter was enough to inspire Jennifer and Bionner to make a new holiday tradition in their home, complete with a bigger mailbox. They work with Santa to respond to everyone.

“It keeps me busy,” smiles Bioner. “I love it!”

That’s not all.

“So last year we decided to start a toy drive,” Jennifer continued.

People make donations, and then children who visit the decorations can take home a wrapped gift.

“Without the grace of the community who donated all of these gifts, we wouldn’t be able to do what we do,” Jennifer said.

“So far we have donated over 800 to 900 toys,” Bioner added.

This is all so awesome that it caught the attention of someone who decided to come see us.

A group of children gathered inside Bionner and Jennifer’s house as Santa read “Twas the Night Before Christmas” to them. Mrs. Claus watched the children listen attentively.

“I want kids to create memories,” Bioner said. “Memories are something that last forever. As long as I’m able to do that, I’ll always keep it. It all started with a letter, a letter. It was Harrison who started it with a letter.”

Do you have any good, positive news? You can email me at [email protected].