Merry Christmas Eve!
Have you ever wished you could peek in on the holiday celebrations of politicians? Today you can. Governor-elect John Bel Edwards was kind enough to share his family’s plans for this very special Christmas.
“We’re going to stay home this year and enjoy Christmas at our house.”
Edwards says that means this year they will be doing many things that have become family traditions.
“We always go to mass on the afternoon of Christmas Eve, and so we will do that at St. Helena Catholic Church in Amite – probably at the five o’clock mass.”
He says their family party begins right after church.
“Then we go to my mother’s house, where all of my brothers and my sister and their families – there’ll be about 75 people altogether who go -- celebrate Christmas on Christmas Eve.”
Edwards has six brothers, so his estimate of tonight’s crowd is no exaggeration. But, he says, tomorrow morning’s celebration will be much quieter.
“We will wake up at our house and see what Santa Claus brought us on Christmas Day.”
Even though we asked, he wouldn’t tell us what he asked Santa to bring him.
The Governor-elect says after the gift bonanza, he, his wife and their three children usually travel to Mississippi to have Christmas dinner with his wife Donna’s family.
“My in-laws are going to come up and spend the day with us, which is a little bit different.”
Edwards says they are all aware than next year’s celebration will be much different. They will be in a different house, and much more in the public eye, so that makes this year’s Christmas especially poignant.
And, he has a message for you:
“I want to wish each of you a very Merry Christmas, and a wonderful and Happy New Year in 2016.”
Wallis Watkins and I both wish you the happiest of holidays, as well.