Letter to the Editor: Festival of Trees

Posted 12/1/20

Hello, Okeechobee, the Advent of Christmas season is almost here.

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Letter to the Editor: Festival of Trees

Posted

Hello, Okeechobee, the Advent of Christmas season is almost here. The stores are ready and the seasonal decorations abound. Where would we be if Christ had not been born? Thank you to all the volunteers who donated decorated trees, wreaths of many sizes, gift baskets, a quilt and tabletop decorations. There were 39 units to enjoy and marvel at. Yes, many photos were taken! It was beautiful to see and made me happy for the gift of the Festival of Trees at Okeechobee Main Street.

It takes many hours to make such displays — time and money that was shared this year. One 9-foot tree must have 600 ornaments on it. One all-white tree had clear glass bulbs filled with white feathers. A red and white tree had candy canes all over and you could almost taste the peppermint! Choosing a favorite was nearly impossible. One tree had only painted eggs including the three wise men, the shepherds with sheep — and Joseph, Mary and Jesus. An art piece.

Over the years, Okeechobee has enjoyed the annual free presentation by Hospice, but this year it was different. The festival was not free and a fee was needed to see the displays. All the donations were only visible from 6 to 9 p.m. on Saturday. People were turned away from the opportunity to see beautiful creations. A family with three children would have had to pay $75 to get in. They left with a 9-year-old in tears because she wanted to see the trees.

I would offer a suggestion that the Main Street continue the festival in coming years but make it free as we had been accustomed to. They could have a bidding party for purchasing the trees and wreaths as a separate item. Three hours was not long enough for Okeechobee to enjoy seeing the “reason of the season” in Christmas beauty. Since all 39 exhibits were free donations, many more people could have been enriched and their hearts filled in Christmas joy.

Marlene Burns

letter to the editor, festival of trees

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