Festival Of Trees Starts Friday At Red Lion

Forget the turkey in the kitchen, for just a minute.

Although Thanksgiving is now on the collective Valley brain, Christmas is only about a month away. With that in mind, the living room corner sporting lots of outlets suddenly looks pretty bare, huh?

Why? No tree.

The Valley Hospital Foundation can cure all that. The group hosts its ninth-annual Festival of Trees this weekend at the Red Lion Inn at Sullivan Road and Interstate 90. All funds raised from the event benefit Valley Hospital and Medical Center. Lisa Orgon, the foundation’s special events coordinator, said the event raised $90,000 last year.

The 1995 event is themed “When You Wish Upon a Star.”

The festival starts Friday and continues through Tuesday. This year, 34 beautifully decorated trees, some with getaway gift packages included, will be auctioned or raffled. Auction prices typically range from $1,000 to $3,000, although one tree went for $6,000 last year. Raffle tickets are $1.

The auction happens Saturday. The 10-tree raffle will continue until the festival’s end.

For more information and reservations, call 922-9489.

, DataTimes