Betsy Stephens named St. Nicholas for COTR 2017

When event organizer Jennifer Swims announced the name of St. Nicholas for Christmas on the River 2017 Thursday night, Betsy Stephens may well have been the only person in attendance that was surprised by the revelation. Just after the annual lighting of Public Square, Stephens stood on stage as one of the 10 nominees for the honor, confident she would soon be applauding one of her nine deserving neighbors as their name was called.

As Swims finished reading the impressive list of nominees and cited reasons for their inclusion in the festivities, she came to the announcement. “Betsy Stephens.” The name rolled off the evening emcee’s tongue with unmitigated ease and hung momentarily in the unseasonably warm, undeniably humid night air. Before Stephens could appropriately process the moment, an approving round of applause swelled up from the dozens in attendance.

“I was really, really surprised. When Jennifer told me that I was nominated, she didn’t tell me who else was nominated,” Stephens said of the moment she heard her name connected to the prestigious title. “And some years they don’t have many nominees. And I thought it was going to be one of those years and it is going to be quiet and I’m going to have to say something. Then, when I saw the list, I thought, ‘I’m good. I won’t have to say anything for sure.’”

Her surprise came as the logical culmination of a suddenly undermined temerity that she would not be named for the honor she has for decades seen go to some of the most deserving citizens. The honor seeks to recognize those who have functioned as a beacon through volunteerism and community service. The mantle, and the accompanying distinguishing garb, had now fallen to Stephens.

“I guess I was a little embarrassed because that’s not why I do anything,” Stephens, who instinctively ducks the spotlight, said. “I just think of other people as being worthy of this, the Cindy Hays. That’s who I think of when I think of St. Nick, the Jennifer Roemens. I’m honored.”

Stephens received the honor in front of a diverse crowd of onlookers that included her husband, her three children, and her mother and father. The heart to serve, evident to all who know her, is something Stephens intends to pass along to her children as she points to her mother as an influential presence in her own work.

“Just about service, I try to pass that on to them, try to make sure that they understand it,” Stephens said before sharing a value she has sought to impress upon her children. “I want to improve what you do. I don’t necessarily want to improve what you have.”

As the Christmas on the River festivities roll on, Stephens will now find herself near the middle of most of them. And as the day parade rolls through downtown Saturday, she’ll find herself in an unfamiliar position in the spotlight.

“I don’t know that I have every been on a Christmas on the River float. I don’t think I have. My children have been, but I don’t know that I’ve ever been on a float,” she said. “I’ve worked on floats and done other things with them, but I don’t think I’ve ever been on one. It’ll be fun.”

The list of nominees also included Mandy Fields, Richard Bryant, Jennifer Jordan, Kathleen Randall, David McGee, Amanda Hall, Sylvia Tate, Jennifer Thomason and Jim Stanford.