Tradition runs strong at annual Christmas tree sale, now in its 65th year of helping kids
Dr. Jim Morrish and his wife, Vicki, have been buying their Christmas trees from the Boys & Girls Clubs of Manatee County every year since 1985.
“It’s a long story. My husband grew up in Bradenton and he went to the Boys Club,” Vicki Morrish said Wednesday of their long-term loyalty.
As a former board member, Vicki Morrish has also seen first-hand the results of the Boys & Girls Clubs’ service.
“It’s an amazing organization that serves kids in Manatee County. Without them, there would be so many kids running around on the street. I’ve seen kids come through the clubs and make something out of their lives. It’s amazing when you can touch someone like that,” she said.
The Boys & Girls Clubs’ Christmas tree sales have been a Bradenton tradition for 65 years. Each year it opens the day after Thanksgiving at McKelvey Park, next to Jessie P. Miller Elementary School, 3913 Manatee Ave. W.
“The sale is going really, really well,” Beth Clark, chief operating office,r said Wednesday of this year’s tree sale.
The Boys & Girls Clubs started with an inventory of about 700 Fraser fir trees and 75 wreaths, and has sold about half of those.
“We’re up about $7,000 over last year, which is great. I think that’s because Thanksgiving was so late this year and people are feeling the rush to get their trees,” Clark said.
Trees, kept fresh in refrigerated trucks provided by Tropicana, range in size from three feet to about 12-feet, and in price from $30 to $305.
The Christmas tree sale is the clubs’ largest fundraiser of the year, and aids in its mission of providing after-school and summer programs that offers hope and opportunity to children in the community, especially those who need it most.
Hours for the tree sale are 5-8 p.m. Monday-Thursday, 5-9 p.m. Friday, 9 a.m.- 9 p.m. Saturday, and noon-8 p.m. Sunday. The Boys & Girls Clubs moved the sale primarily to evening hours due to the challenges of finding enough volunteers to staff the tree lot.
“We will keep the lot open until we run out of trees, or if we get down to just a few, we’ll take them to the clubs to give to families,” Clark said.
In 1946, Boys Clubs of Manatee County, under the guidance of the Kiwanis Club of Bradenton, interested individuals, and other civic groups, began operation as an affiliated member of Boys Clubs of America, according to the organization’s web site.
“In 1992 the organization made a major change by opening membership to girls and changing the name to Boys & Girls Clubs of Manatee County,” the web site says.
For more information, visit https://www.bgcmanatee.org/about/ or call 941-761-2582.
This story was originally published December 5, 2019 at 6:00 AM.
