LEWISTON — The Franco Center will host its annual Christmas concert by the local group

at 2 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 8. Tickets are $10 and seating is general admission.

Spanning two families, three generations and with a couple of friends included for good measure, Just Us has been performing Christmas concerts at the Franco Center virtually since it opened. Over the years, the 10 previous December concerts they’ve played have made them a local holiday tradition.

Led by 73-year-old Nel Meservier, Just Us performs dozens of times each year for residents at nursing homes and at fundraisers for local nonprofits. While the group sometimes includes teenagers and consists of as many as two dozen members, this Sunday’s concert will feature 13 singers, all adults, with Meservier on keyboards.

Meservier said that the group strives to keep each year’s concert fresh by performing different material from year to year and by including recently written Christmas songs that are largely unfamiliar to the masses.

“We always try to do songs that other people don’t perform, including some that most people have never heard,” said Meservier.

As examples, he cited “Let’s Put Christ Back in Christmas” and a re-written “soldier version” of the classic poem “T’was the Night Before Christmas” in which Santa arrives on Christmas Eve at the home of an American serviceman and becomes overwhelmed by his sacrifice and dedication to his country so that others may celebrate the holiday in peace with their families.

That poem, written by a U.S. Marine in 1983 and originally titled “Merry Christmas, My Friend,” will be part of a tribute the group will perform in the show’s second half for the men and women serving in the military who can’t be home for Christmas.

Tickets can be purchased at www.francocenter.org, by calling 207-689-2000, or at the box office, 46 Cedar St., Monday through Friday between noon and 4 p.m. They can also be purchased at the door.

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