But for Saratoga Springs native Joan Gailor, it’s the little things that can brighten someone else’s day and bring them joy. That’s why her little home in Jefferson Terrace can be found decked out in themed decorations for almost every holiday of the year—for Halloween, she puts out scarecrows and pumpkins; for Easter, she hangs large Easter eggs and has jellybeans on hand for any kids passing by; and for Christmas, she goes all out with large ornaments of all colors that glisten when the sun hits them just the right way, not to mention an inflatable Santa sitting on a lawn chair in the front yard and lights in her windows.
“I’ve been living in Jefferson Terrace for 10 years, and I’ve been doing this every year,” Gailor said. “I do all the holidays, and I just love it.”
Gailor said that her decorations cheer up her neighbors and delight the kids from Head Start who pass by often, since the Franklin Community Center is located just blocks away from Gailor’s home.
Though an elderly woman (when asked her age, she replied, “How old do you think I am?” Laughing, she said, “I think my mother made a mistake on my birth certificate.”), she continues to dig out her decorations from her basement year after year in her efforts to keep the holiday spirit alive in her Jefferson Terrace neighborhood.
“I go up and down my basement stairs over and over,” Gailor said, who is affected by arthritis. “My daughter Debbie says, ‘Mom, you shouldn’t be doing that!’ and I say, ‘As long as I can do it, I’m going to keep doing it!’”
But decorating isn’t the only joy that Gailor finds—she consistently shares little acts of kindness with everyone she knows, including construction workers who are currently working in her neighborhood.
“You see that little dangly thing hanging off that Porta Potty?” she asked, pointing out her front window. “It’s a Santa hat I hung there with a big Christmas card. One of the workers said ‘Joan, was that you who did that?’ And I said yes, and he said ‘Well, that just made my day!’”
Along with taking care of her neighbors or friends who are sick or need help, Gailor said that baking is one of her biggest passions.
“I bake all the time for everybody,” she said. “I bake for the maintenance men who work around here, my neighbors, and every week I bake for my daughter and her office at ESPEY and if I don’t happen to send something they’ll say, ‘Debbie, is your mother sick?’ I love to bake. As long as I can keep baking and doing things for people, I’ll be fine.”
Gailor is probably the proudest and most passionate when she speaks of her six children and eight grandchildren who are currently living scattered out in the South, as she continually raved about all of their different accomplishments. But with family, Gailor has also had to face plenty of hardships—after losing one of her daughters to Hodgkin’s disease and having two husbands pass away, she said helping others is what helps her through it all.
“There are times I get depressed, especially this time of year—I lost one of my daughters in the month of December—but if I can do something, I get such a nice feeling,” Gailor said.
For now, Gailor is keeping busy with plenty of holiday baking and planning get-togethers with the many friends she has accumulated over the years—and she plans on continuing to brighten everyone’s days with small, thoughtful acts of kindness.
“I love it when I can do something for somebody, I truly do. It doesn’t have to be Christmas—it can be anytime.”
