HGTV featured a Pipka Collector

This past Christmas season (1995), Gloria Thomas of Shelbyville, Indiana opened her home and collections to the world. 

It all began when Gloria hosted local senior citizens for a special Christmas tour in July.  The word got out about her extensive Christmas collection that features Pipka Santas, and Nancy Glass Productions came calling.  They were filming a holiday special “All Out Christmas” to air nationwide in mid-December on the HGTV cable network.  There were twelve homes across the United States included, from such diverse locales as Arizona to New York.

Her collection dates back to her first Christmas with her husband, Dan Thomas, of 27 years.  Gloria celebrates the Christmas season year round by confining most of her collection to only one room.  Yet when the holidays draw nearer, she begins spreading out into all rooms of her home.

Gloria and Dan’s home each year, but especially this season, sparkles with wonderful decorations. A couple unique items are a Christmas tree on the bathroom wall and a master bedroom holiday bedspread.  A permanent part of their home is a beautiful full-sized white wire Christmas tree sculpture that stands in the living room.  Her collections consists of more than 2,200 Santas, plus many nativity scenes, trees, angels and other festive things.
 
Gloria’s love for Santas and Christmas started about 15 years ago, when she began to research the history of Christmas traditions and particularly Santa Claus.  As a second-grade teacher at Hendricks Elementary School, Gloria shares her knowledge through her unique lesson plan called “Christmas Around the World” near the holidays.  She brings in pieces of her collection to illustrate each country to her students.

I have found out that Nancy Glass Productions, owner and executive producer Nancy Glass, was a former on-air host of “Inside Edition” and “American Journal” and winner of six Emmy awards. Her company produces “Mission: Organization” and “Kitchen Trends” as well as numerous specials for the cable network.

Pipka, Gloria and I were fortunate to meet each other at Carols’ Crafts in Nashville, Indiana this past year at a Pipka event.  Gloria shared with us that this production is a reality and that it will be aired numerous times during the month of December.  We are thrilled to meet Gloria and her husband and honored to be a part of their lives. 

The special did air, quite a few times, and was wonderful!  Pipka Santas found their place among all the beauty of Christmas!

Michele Johnson
President of Prizm inc.