Ring In The Season

Inspired by home and family
Tracy Larsen shares a sneak peek and the story behind his 2023 Ring in the Season ornament design.

Ring in the Season
9th in the series.

When it comes to finding inspiration for an ornament design, there’s nothing better than home and family, where traditions begin and lasting memories are made. That’s just where Tracy Larsen found his vision for the 2023 Ring in the Season ornament, the 9th in the series.

“My mother’s family-the Barkers, among others-were some of the earliest pioneers to settle the town of North Ogden, Utah, in the early 1850s.” Tracy says. “It’s my Mayberry, where the best of my childhood memories were made, and the homes and buildings featured on this ornament were a big part of that.”

“The Barkers had a whole section of property along the main road, Washington Boulevard, starting with my grandparents’ home on the south, then the family barn, silo, and dairy cows. Then came my uncle Marvin’s home, the post office that my aunt Maureen ran (and where Barker Dairy products were sold), and my uncle Wayne’s gas and service station, where I worked as a teenager. Those buildings are all gone now, but the memories remain.”

Tracy started with a pencil sketch that shows all those buildings he remembers so fondly, but it was his family who brought those places to life, and he honored them on this ornament, too.

“My mom’s four brothers are represented in the scene. My uncle Verle, who took care of the family cherry orchard, is driving his truck to deliver the Christmas tree. My uncle Marvin is represented by the dairy barn, the Quality Dairy delivery truck, his home and the post office, and my uncle Wayne with his Barker Service Station. My uncle James, who was killed in the Italian Alps in 1945 as a member of the 10th Mountain Division during World War II, is represented by the star in the front window of my grandparents’ home.”

This isn’t the first time Tracy has been inspired by his childhood home. He’s featured both his hometown and his grandparents’ house in various ornaments over the vears

“It started with the lithopane ornament and the A Joyous Christmas ball ornament back in 1999. And, in 2012, I used my grandparents’ home as inspiration, with their house in the center of swirling snow, while Dean Martin sings Let It Snow.‘

Tracy’s 2023 ornament brings together all the very best parts of Christmas: happy childhood memories, the places that take us back to those times, and the people we love at the center of it all. We’d say when it comes to next year’s holiday, there will be no better way to ring in the season.

“Inspired by home and family.” For Keeps 21 Winter 2022: 4-5.