Thanks to an ancestry app, Marianne Bornhoft can claim the gift of Christmas cousins this year, closer than she could have imagined. For 16 years, she has employed the same housekeeper, Lyndia Danielson. After her mother's death on Oct. 18, Bornhoft felt a tug to look on 23andMe and saw Danielson's name, DNA-matched as a cousin. Neither of them knew. Bornhoft had a similar experience soon after her dad Ray Senn died in 2019, when she found Jennifer Hultquist, who also works in real estate. Another agent had said Hultquist and Bornhoft were likely cousins, but Bornhoft at first shrugged it off. She later texted Hultquist, who confirmed they're cousins.

Americans typically bring out their nutcracker dolls for Christmas, then pack them away. But it's a holiday wonderland all year long in the house of Hayden Lake resident C.J. Davis, who keeps her collection of about 2,800 nutcrackers on display in an upstairs room. There's a lot of history, and dusting, among those artifacts tucked neatly on shelves. 

Spokane's Riverfront Park gets the spotlight in a new children's book with a magical tale bringing to life the Looff Carrousel ponies along with the venue's many sculptures for one night of adventure. "Ponies in the Park" is a collaboration by author Mary Carpenter and illustrator Mary Pat Kanaley. The Spokane women won a 2021 Spokane Arts Grant Award and self-published the book. Part of the $10,000 grant will be used to distribute the book to Spokane County second-grade classes and elementary school libraries to help kids learn about local history and art in the downtown park.

Festive holiday decor fills the Paulsen Center's second-floor foyer as people stroll by its restaurant, offices or nearby skywalk. The downtown nook also plays host to an almost hidden treasure for a midday boost – live Christmas music. Each December, the space gains a piano and a player for about 10 days near the staircase, where visitors will find longtime Spokane musician Michelina Tyrie, 83. She's booked there to play holiday music for three hours during work days, ending this week.

Gary Girod can't pass a red kettle without placing at least a couple dollars inside. When the retired firefighter sees a Salvation Army volunteer with a bell, it also takes him back more than 60 years. That's when the charity showed up in the most unlikely of places, while stranded on a mountain.

Claretha Caldwell thought a pancreatic cancer diagnosis in 2020 was a death sentence, as a disease that quickly killed her uncle and has a low survival rate. Today, Caldwell can call herself a survivor after early detection, cancer treatments and surgery. Caldwell has since had clear scans indicating her pancreatic cancer is gone. This fall, her surgeon came to her 60th birthday party celebration.

This holiday season marks Christmas Tree Elegance's 40th year when it returns Tuesday through Dec. 11, still benefitting the symphony. Volunteers have prepped 500,000 raffle tickets – many in bundles of 25 – for a chance to win one of 15 trees with gifts or a Father Christmas sculpture, said Peggy Springer, a volunteer since 1987 and chair of ticket sales the past 20 years.

Providence and MultiCare hospitals have renewed their call for registered pet therapy volunteers, after animal-assisted programs were halted during the pandemic. Both hospital systems plan to expand therapy dog visits if enough people sign up. The volunteers must meet requirements of Pet Partners, which screens and registers therapy animal handlers and their pets to visit hospitals and other sites.