Willow Street Mennonite Church will hold a live Nativity on Saturday, Dec. 20; Sunday, Dec. 21; and Wednesday, Dec. 24. The event will be held from 5 to 8:30 p.m. at the church, 399 E. Penn Grant Road, Willow Street.

Attendees will gather in the church's multipurpose room. Ushers will be on-site to help guide people. Tickets will be issued, and groups will leave every half hour. There will be carts available to transport visitors who are unable to walk through the live Nativity.

Cookies and hot chocolate will be served. Live Christmas music performed by church congregants, and a children's activity corner will be set up.

"People can kind of hang out in (the multipurpose room) until they're called in for their time," pastor Eric Herr said. "We have two scenes in the church, and then what really makes it special is we walk them outside. We have a nice connection with the farm over here; they'll walk down and have the field scene with the angels and the shepherds and the innkeeper and then into the barn, where the final barn scene will be with live animals."

Pastor Joe Sherer will give closing comments, and everyone will ride back to the church on a wagon.

There is no admission fee. Donations will be accepted for Haitians Helping Haitians for Christ, a nonprofit organization that provides food and services to those in Haiti who are in need, Herr said.

Willow Street Mennonite congregants Elage and Betty Estime are involved with the charity. Elage is from Haiti and has family there. "They have a ministry down there, along with her family that still lives there," said Herr. "They go down as much as they can. We just really believe in their ministry. They're really trying to get Haitians to empower Haitians to do the ministry and the work themselves."

Herr stated that people who have attended past live Nativity events at the church will see something new. "I think the greatest part of it is just the way it brings it to life, because we hear the same story every year," he said. "This year's live Nativity) will come from a different perspective again. Even if you've come before, it'll give you a slightly different taste from (another) biblical person's perspective. It's just a way to really make it come alive. I would even say at the end, I've noticed different times people are really being moved. In the barn scene, we have a chorus that will sing a verse of a Christmas song, usually 'Silent Night.' It's just something about even that moment that kind of hits you again and makes it real."

Willow Street Mennonite has held its live Nativity every other year for more than 20 years.

"It's for all ages," Herr said. "Kids really enjoy it. We have kids in the script this year, which isn't always the case. There are some younger kid parts, so I feel like that the children will be into that and appreciate that."

For more information on the live Nativity, visit http://www.willowstreetmennonite.com/ or call 717-464-2422.