17th Annual Festival of Trees Shines Bright

The 17th annual bigger than ever Festival of Trees has come and gone and The Lung Association, Great Lakes Power Transmission and their partners were very pleased with all aspects of the event. Christmas lovers of all ages visited the festival between November 19th and 22nd at the Machine Shop at Mill Square. They enjoyed the trees, participated in the auction and tried their luck at the raffles. Over 250 people were on hand for the RBC Royal Bank Take 5 on Thursday evening. The festivities continued long into the evening with The Kiss 100.5 Coffee House. Youngsters enjoyed the Kiwanis Activities Centre and Christmas shopping in the Northern Dental Care “Secret Shop”. At the Station Mall, 500 guests participated in The Festival of Trees, Sold Out “Breakfast with Santa”, sponsored by the Station Mall Merchants Association. All proceeds from this event also support The Lung Association.

As part of the Festival, guests were asked to vote for their favourite tree. This year’s winning entry was entered by Algoma University; “Gold and Glitter: Celebrating 50 years” certainly caught the attention of all the guests. Second place went to Michael’s Arts and Crafts “’Twas the Night Before Halloween” Third place went to Breaking Away with “When you Wish Upon a Star.” Fourth was by Sault Community Career Centre “Angelic Tree” and fifth place went to Huron Superior OECTA (Ontario English Catholic Teachers) with a tree called “Royalty Tree.”

Katrina Pollock of Sault Ste. Marie was the lucky winner with ticket #92. This year the raffle was sold out by Thursday night for the first time ever.

Funds generated by the Festival of Trees will support Lung Association community programs and research for another year. The event generated over $72,000 in revenue for The Lung Association. Without the assistance of the many community organizations, businesses and volunteers that participated and supported The Lung Association, the Festival would not have been possible.

The Lung Association extends its sincerest thanks to sponsors, donors, volunteers and guests of The Festival of Trees. It is with this support that The Lung Association will continue in its mission “To Improve Lung Health”.

Preparations for next year’s Festival have already begun! For more information, please call
256-2335. Happy Holidays from The Lung Association.