ROCK SPRINGS — While many residents hadn’t even started thinking about Christmas decorations yet, City of Rock Springs employees were busy creating handmade ornaments for the tree the mayor lights every year.

The Rock Springs Mayor’s Christmas Tree lighting ceremony is something a lot of residents look forward to attending every year. This year, many residents may have noticed the new bright, big, and beautiful ornaments adorning the tree on Elk Street.

Back in November, City of Rock Springs Parks employees were already creating the Christmas ornaments for the tree.

“We had the idea last year to work on a way to design some ornaments. This started off with using beach balls and evolved to being able to locate rubber balls locally that were sturdier,” Mark Lyon, City of Rock Springs Parks Superintendent, said.

Not only did making the ornaments in house save the city money, but it allowed the employees to make them exactly the way they wanted. All 32 ornaments were made during an eight-hour shift with two employees putting them together, Lyon said.

The ornaments were made out of rubber bouncing balls, a tin bucket, and some twine, he said. They were then painted red, green or silver. The employees were challenged with finding materials that were durable enough to withstand Wyoming’s winter weather.

Once the ornaments were made, the streets department helped place them on the tree. This type of project really shows the community what pride its city employees have in their community, Lyon said. With the ornaments being such a success, the city is already making plans for next year.

“Next year we will be making twice as many ornaments and potentially with another surprise,” Lyon said.

We can’t wait to see what the city comes up with next year. If you haven’t had a chance to see the new ornaments yet, be sure and stop by the Christmas tree on Elk Street.