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BISBEE — The shops are getting ready for the big shopping surge and city crews have been busy hanging the holiday lights all in preparation of the Bisbee Christmas season kick-off on Nov. 28.
Now in its 26th year, the Bisbee Woman’s Club annual Historic Home Tour will take visitors all around the city with visits to 10 of Bisbee’s turn-of-the-century homes on Friday. These homes have not been on previous tours.
The home and studio of well-known artist Rose Johnson will be on the tour as well as the former home of Phelps Dodge physician Dr. F.F. Shine built in 1904. A home on Howell Street was once a one room cabin built in 1897 and features some of Bisbee’s largest century plants in the desert gardens. The homes on the tour have been renovated and each offers a unique story.
The 10-home tour continues on Saturday.
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Bobbe Hossman, Bisbee Woman’s Club member, said money generated from the tour stays in Bisbee to benefit local organizations in need of funding. Four nonprofits on the club’s gifting list are Border Animal Rescue, Verhelst Recovery House, Naco Wellness Center and VICAP.
“These are organizations that don’t receive much funding,” Hossman added.
Border Animal Rescue assists abandoned cats and dogs and tries to find them good homes. Verhelst provides recovery services for men who are addicted to drugs and alcohol. The Naco Wellness Center, run entirely by volunteers, provides health care for people on both sides of the border. VICAP helps provide gasoline for volunteers who drive the disabled and elderly to their doctors’ appointments, testing facilities and to pharmacies to get their medicines.
This year, the Woman’s Club added calendars for sale, containing photos of the homes that will be on the tour. The photographs, taken by local photographer David McDougal, offer a summertime glimpse of the homes. The additional funds from the sales will allow the group to provide more help to local nonprofits.
Another fundraiser that weekend is the fifth annual Art Chair Auction. Chairs painted and decorated in a variety of mediums by local artists will be available for silent auction bids on both days. The unique, one-of-a-kind chairs will be on display at the Howell Street home on the tour. Bids for the chairs can be made there Friday and Saturday. The winners of the auction will be announced at 4 p.m. Saturday.
Hossman said Cochise College Art Department students are crafting miniature chairs ranging in size from six inches to twelve inches tall for the auction.
“We usually get between 35 and 50 chairs to auction, but with these miniatures I’m not sure how many we’ll have this year,” she added.
The club splits the bid on each chair, giving 50 percent to the artist.
Friday evening, the annual Festival of Lights will be held at 6 p.m. at the Copper Queen Library with entertainment and a visit from Santa Claus. The celebration will feature singing, dancing and other entertainment.
Early Saturday morning, visit the Bisbee Farmer’s Market where local baked goods, produce, nuts, meats are still being sold. The market also features many fine local crafters who offer unique items of jewelry, leather clothing, soaps and much more that are perfect for Christmas presents in every price range, said Laura Smith, director of the Farmers Market.
Also on Saturday, enjoy shopping the quaint shops and the many galleries in Old Bisbee and take a look at what the Old Bisbee Holiday Bazaar has to offer. There will be musicians, entertainers and local artisans along Main Street and up Brewery Gulch. Many of the shops will remain open until 7 p.m. and will offer special promotions, said Kathy Sowden, bazaar organizer.
Doug Hocking from Bisbee Visitors Center said there have been a lot of reservations made for the home tour. Last year, around 800 visitors came to see the homes on the tour. This year, he expects an increase.
“Our numbers are up from last year. The phone is ringing off the hook,” he added.
INFORMATION
Friday, Nov. 28, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Saturday, Nov. 29, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Tickets: $10 in advance for adults; $3 for children (2 to 12 years of age)
Festival of Lights
Friday, Nov. 28, 6 p.m. at the Copper Queen Library on Main Street
Bisbee Farmers Market
Saturday, Nov. 29, 9 a.m to 1 p.m.
Vista Park in the Warren District
Old Bisbee Holiday Bazaar
Saturday, Nov. 29, 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Artisan Fair will be held in the parking lot across from the Grand Hotel on Main Street in Old Bisbee.
For information, contact the Bisbee Visitor’s Center at 432-3554 or toll free at (866) 224-7233 or visit discoverbisbee.com.
Herald/Review reporter Shar Porier can be reached at 515-4692 or by e-mail at shar.porier@bisbeereview.net.
