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Lights at Speedway, holiday celebration for a couple

CHARLOTTE, N.C — There is something about Christmas lights and music that captures your attention and can help you forget about your troubles, even for just a moment.

This time last year, the lights at the Speedway were the only escape that Melanie and Ed Biggers had.

"Last December 16th, we had a fire at our home and lost everything we owned," said Melanie Biggers, from Concord. "When it got to be Christmas Eve, we didn't have a Christmas tree or anything of our family traditions with us."

The Speedway Christmas became their holiday celebration.

Flash forward to today, and the Biggerses now own their own business, called Huggable Creations. They have moved out of a hotel, back into their home. But they have decided to make the Speedway their holiday tradition again, selling fuzzy friends they hope will spread the Christmas joy they found.

The Biggerses are taking that holiday spirit a step further, taking the stuffing machine on the road this Christmas to make stuffed animals for children in need. They are hoping that the animals provide a peaceful escape like the one they found last year.

"An awful lot of people reached out and tried to make us comfortable at Christmas last year when we didn't have the things around us that made us feel comfortable and at home," said Melanie Biggers.

"We want to give back a little bit of what we received," said Ed Biggers.