WORTHINGTON - Kathy and Ron Tangen love to decorate their home, especially when it involves Christmas trees.
At first snowfall in mid-October, the Worthington couple were eager to put up their home’s eight Christmas trees. As has become their tradition, Ron got the trees out of storage and shaped up for Kathy to come behind and carefully place each ornament and filler.
The outcome of their festive decorative passion will be on full display Friday and Saturday, as they open the doors to their 2430 Dayton Drive home for the 16th Annual Hospice Cottage Christmas House Walk. The Tangen residence and three other couples’ homes will be open for guests from 4:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Friday and 9 a.m. to noon Saturday. Other homes on the tour include: Tiffany and Dusty Neugebauer, 29412 330th St., Bigelow; Alesha and Rob Carstensen, 1616 Pinewood Drive; and Terri and Randy Janssen, 1040 Miles Drive.
“It gets you in the mood for Christmas when you go on these walks,” said Ron Tangen, who said the couple has participated in at least the last 10 Christmas walks.
In fact, the couple hopes their home will help get people in the Christmas mood and even inspire home decor ideas in visitors, much like past walks and other tour of homes events in metropolitan areas have done in their own home.
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After years of collecting ideas and adapting the blueprint they’d kept tucked away, the couple hired a contractor to build their sketches into a livable home. Construction occured throughout 2015, and the couple moved into their home on the west end of Lake Okabena in early 2016.
The home’s open concept, 9-foot ceilings, white woodwork and large windows with transoms will be just a selection of the Tangens’ deliberate decisions that guests will witness as they locate all eight Christmas trees.
With interior walls painted a shade of grey consistent throughout the entire home, each room has its own unique, classy look - a product of the Tangens’ home decor choices of various color schemes.
“It’s simple that way,” Ron said about their decision to paint every wall the same color.
Kathy said it was fun to build a new home after having only remodeled in the past.
The upcoming Christmas Home Walk won’t be the first the Tangens have opened their home to guests, but they assured it will be a completely new experience than when they hosted in their former ranch-style home on Maplewood Drive in 2013.
Ron called the tour a fun activity and an opportunity to see and reconnect with people he may see just once a year.
“It gets you in the spirit and for a good cause,” Kathy added about the Hospice Cottage benefit.
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Tickets may be purchased in advance at Hy-Vee, McCarthy’s Floral, Sterling Drugstore, Adorn 1024, Sanford Worthington Gift Shop and the Worthington Area Chamber of Commerce.
A Christmas tree will also be raffled off this year. Tickets may be purchased at Duffer’s Bar and Grill in Worthington from 4:30 p.m. to 10 p.m. on Friday and from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturday. The tree may be seen now through Saturday at Duffer’s in Worthington.
