Each year at Swansons, we create a themed holiday model train village. Actually, village isn’t quite right; it’s more of a universe, filled with magical thematic elements and a cast of returning characters visiting the train landscape every year. Previous themes have included Star Wars, How the Grinch Stole Christmas, Frozen, and last year’s theme - Treehouses. Indiana Jones always makes an appearance, as does Shrek and Donkey. Weird Barbie set up shop last year in her dream treehouse, and Jabba the Hut always has a special place.
This year, though, the train is even more magical and special. It’s partly because of the great theme - Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory - but mostly because of the people who made this year’s train happen. Especially one new addition to the train team, a boy named Sam. Sam is an autistic person who has specific and deep passions, one of which is Willy Wonka. He knows everything about the story, the characters, the setting. He can discuss the finer points all day long. And that’s how this year’s train took shape.
So how did Sam get involved with the Swansons’ train?
A small group of us, led by Swansons’ owner and CEO, Brian Damron, come up with possible themes each year and Brian makes the final decision. This past summer, Brian was pondering themes for our 100th anniversary year when a friend and his family stopped by. The friend's son, Sam, began to share his love of Willy Wonka. Brian, who is also the father of an autistic person, knew that not only was this a great theme but also a chance to include Sam in the creative process and let him help Swansons make the train as amazing as possible.
Sam was incredibly excited and ready to get started right away. So, we scheduled an initial train-team meeting with our special guest. It was Sam’s first official business meeting and he came prepared: he brought along his Wonka stories, Wonka-related books, and his collection of scenes from Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory that he had painstakingly created from Legos and other materials. We had an expert in our midst!
We decided that along with his consulting skills, he would also be responsible for a section of the landscape. Sam and his father got to work, spending quality time together to create a scene that included a custom-made newspaper and the representation of one of Sam’s favorite storylines, Violet Beauregard and an unfortunate incident involving an experimental 3-course meal in gum form!
A small group of us worked together to plan out the overall design. We knew we wanted to display the major scenes of the story - each character’s interaction with a different space at the factory - as well as Charlie’s house and the town. There were so many extraordinary details to choose from, it was hard to narrow it down! We also knew that our familiar cast of characters - who appear in each year’s landscape - would be guests at the chocolate factory, exploring and/or causing mischief.
Throughout the summer, our lead train designer, Jackie Watts, worked with Brian on implementing the design and structural elements of the landscape. They created a working water feature (of course the train needed a chocolate waterfall!) They also designed other moving parts, including the Great Glass Elevator and candy-making elements in the factory.
As summer turned to fall, Sam came by for consultations, and more members joined the train team. Swansons’ employees from across departments pitched in, each adding their unique talents to help make the vision a reality. The created the factory and town, fashioned dozens of Minions and Oompa Loompas, and even constructed a miniature replica of our conservatory building, complete with our café and beloved koi ponds.
Our special Willy-Wonka-themed train ushered in the start of our 100th holiday season, and now we get to experience the best part of the whole endeavor: the joy and delight of our customers as they discover each carefully crafted detail.
We made a short film to tell the story of this special train, where we interviewed Sam and other train team members. You can watch it below.
Sam’s class at school was excited to learn that he had a part in the Swansons’ holiday train, and our train even made it onto King 5’s Evening (with a cameo of Elmo lifting off in the great glass elevator).
All in all, this year’s train has been a special journey and we hope it adds a little bit of magic to your holiday season. Our train is up and running through January 5, 2025. Be sure to stop by and take a look.