Festival of Trees opens Dec. 2 at CWACS

Nov. 15—If you're a regular at the Cullman Wellness and Aquatic Center, get ready to get into the Christmas spirit while you're working off those post-Thanksgiving calories.

Starting Dec. 2, CWACS will play host to the area's first-ever Festival of Trees, a month-long display set to transform the CWACS greeting area into an arboreal holiday delight. Decorated by local students with help from the Cullman City Tree Commission and the local Rotary club, the wellness center's lobby will come alive with nearly a dozen full-sized Christmas trees (all real, of course), each decorated by local student groups to commemorate a holiday theme of their choosing.

The sizable CWACS entry area "will lend itself beautifully to a full-month display," said Tree Commission advisor Phyllis Hain while discussing plans for the festival at the group's most recent meeting. "The enclosed and protected area should make for an ideal environment for people to come in and enjoy the beauty, as well as the students' artistry and creativity."

Rotarians and the Tree Commission are providing the 7 foot-tall evergreens for the students to decorate, but it's up to the kids — who range in ages from elementary to high school — to decide how each student group will make its tree stand out. "It's a way to promote the value of trees themselves, not only for the benefit of our environment, but also just a thing of pure beauty that is part of our customs and culture," said commission chair Barry Slatton.

"The goal," added Hain, "is to take advantage of the Christmas and holiday season — not only to promote good will in the community, but also to raise the visibility for the tree commission and the promoting of forestry in Alabama."

Several local schools are taking part in the festival, with each group's carefully-curated holiday sights set to remain on display at the CWACS lobby area all month long through Christmas. At least one school — Sacred Heart — already has selected its festival theme: "They'll be doing 'Away in a Manger,'" said Hain. "They're really excited about it, and if we can get everybody else as excited as they are, this will end up becoming a wonderful event."

Benjamin Bullard can be reached by phone at 256-734-2131 ext. 234.