Festival of Trees

One of the highlights of the Holiday season in Utah is the annual Festival of Trees charity benefit for Primary Children's Hospital. Each year people decorate and then donate Christmas trees, wreaths and gingerbread houses which are then sold to the highest bidder. This year my company bought this tree and had it delivered to my office. I sit directly across from it and look at it all day:

This tree is magical! The details are charming. The tree purchase included the "fake" fireplace, rocking chair and all the accessories.

This little elf got himself tangled in ribbon!

This little guy teeters on a stack of packages (and a basketball) to decorate the top of the tree!

Most of the trees donated are done in honor of someone, often children who have been patients at Primary Childrens. There were others donated for family members who have died and even one for a missionary who died while serving his mission this year. This tree is for Mikayla, she is 15 and is currently battling cancer. She survived Retinal Blastoma as a baby and is now fighting a cancer they attribute to the treatments she received while being treated as a child.
Walking the isles of the festival is beautiful, alive with the sparkle of Christmas, but it is also heart wrenching as you read the stories associated with each tree.

The obvious question is what are we going to do with it when the season is over?? The maintenance crew is wondering that too!! They will find a closet somewhere in the building but in the meantime coming to work is like a trip to the North Pole!