Christmas tree growers from across Western North Carolina are donating Christmas trees as part of the nationwide Trees for Troops program, sponsored by the Christmas SPIRIT Foundation and FedEx Corp
This holiday season, 17,000 trees are expected to be delivered to U.S. military bases, as well as international shipments to military bases overseas. Anyone who wants to make a contribution can purchase local Christmas trees from growers, who are more then willing to drop-off trees for troops to the local staging area.
“Trees for Troops is a great program in which we’re able to honor our enlisted men and their families who give us the freedom we have,” Jackson County Christmas Tree Association President Charles Fowler said. “By networking with Christmas Tree growers, consumers and many organizations, we hope to reach the 100,000th tree shipped off since the program’s inception.”
The drop-off site for western counties will be in the Glenville area off of N.C. 107 between the Sylva and Cashiers. The last collection day will be Monday, Nov. 28. Christmas Tree growers Henry Fowler and Dennis Bryson will drive the trees to a staging area for WNC where they will be reloaded and delivered by FedEx to the MCAS (Marine Corp Air Station) New River, Fort Story in Virginia, and Fort Bliss in Texas.