This tradition has brought holiday magic to JoCo for 13 years. Now it’s ending

It’s a magical effort making magic.

For 12 years, a popular holiday display in Johnson County has featured exquisitely designed art from local creators. Michele Sevcik, Joan Sprenger, Andra Chase and Maggie Rudzik are the current four artists behind the gnome and fairy houses featured at the Overland Park Arboretum & Botanical Gardens’ Luminary Walk. The walk is open through Dec. 30.

The effort of these volunteer artists is amazing, said Sonya McLelland, executive director of The Arts & Recreation Foundation of Overland Park, a nonprofit that oversees the Friends of Arboretum, which sponsors the Luminary Walk.

“Think of all the joy they bring,” McLelland said.

But the tradition is coming to an end. This will be the last year of the gnome and fairy homes at the Luminary Walk.

The homes got their start in 2013 with a simple request to Sevcik.

“She was asked to make a small surprise for the Luminary Walk,” McLelland said.

The surprise was a fairy village nestled in a hollowed tree.

The displays grew from there.

“It became a big hit over time,” McLelland said, who said there have been between 35 and 40 homes on display this season.

As more homes were added, so were the number of artists who volunteer to create and refurbish the houses each year.

Rudzik joined the gnome home team in 2018. A retired mail carrier from Stilwell, had been a volunteer for the arboretum. Among her duties was — and still is — arranging to music performances for the Luminary Walk.

But she is also a stain glass artist and a maker of fairy houses. She has been selling her work through craft shows for about 30 years.

Rudzik said she was first asked to help on a Turkish-styled roof of a gnome home.

“They said this needs a little work,” she said. “They watched me work on it and I got their approval.

“I always admired their work,” she said.

Rudzik said she, Sevcik and Chase focus on the gnome houses, while Sprenger is focused on the fairy homes.

In October, the refurbishment begins. Some of the homes remain out year-round while others are stored, Rudzik said.

Since everything is natural, nature takes its course, and refurbishment is needed. Changes also might come about because the artist have a creative idea.

“Over the years we might change the color of a door, might add a porch, or change a walkway,” Rudzik said. “All of us will admit it’s social as well as creative. We see each other every year and feed off of our creativity. It gets the brain going.”

The range in size is impressive.

Some creations are as large as 10 feet long and 4 feet high.

“But there are several tiny individual fairy homes as well,” McLelland said. “It’s a wonderful blend of art and nature.”

But now the tradition is ending for most of the homes. The needs of the arboretum have made it difficult to properly store and refurbish the homes.

“The arboretum has grown, and their needs have grown,” McLelland said.

So, some of the homes will be up for sale. McLelland said signage with QR codes will soon be added along the Gnome & Fairy Village walk, allowing guests to scan and purchase artwork right from their visit.

“We’ll also share the sales webpage on the Luminary Walk website and our social media channels so the public can easily browse and purchase online,” she said.

McLelland said proceeds from the sales will support the Friends of the Arboretum, helping fund future improvement projects and enrichment programs.

This story was originally published December 10, 2025 at 5:00 AM.