Bay Oaks Seniors on the Go: The Festival of Trees

The Festival of Trees is a beautiful showcase of Christmas trees decked out in unique decorations. Each year, the decorators find more unusual ways to adorn their trees. Candy, elves, nutcrackers, tools, flamingos and bees have all adorned pine branches. While you're likely to see almost anything on these beautiful and creative trees, others are decorated traditionally, with ornaments, ribbons, and bows.

Not only are the trees elaborately decorated, but they also have valuable gifts included with them. Each tree has its own theme and comes with gifts themed to the tree, including a glass slipper, a corn hole game, luggage, rocking chairs, wooden wagons, giant teddy bears, weekend getaways, beer-making kits, tai chi lessons, power tools, wine, and tickets and gift cards to Fort Myers restaurants and businesses. People who viewed the showcase were able to vote for their favorite tree and buy raffle tickets, starting at $10 per ticket. Thirteen trees were up for raffle and 9 trees were auctioned off live at the annual Tux and Trees black-tie event on Saturday, December 5th.

This year, the ninth annual festival began on December 2 and continued through December 6, 2015. Proceeds from the auction and from admission, which is $2.00 for visitors ages 12 and up, benefit Goodwill Industries of Southwest Florida and the Sidney & Berne Davis Art Center.

Façade of the Sidney & Berne Davis Art Center

The Sidney & Berne Davis Art Center, 2301 First Street, Fort Myers, is located in the heart of downtown Fort Myers in the River District. Art exhibitions and art walks are regular affairs at the art center as are fund raisers, charity balls, and private events. (FYI: Berne Davis, now over 100 years old, has had a lifelong commitment to philanthropy that has benefited many institutions in the Fort Myers area.)

The building and its surrounding site has a long history. The site on which the building now stands was a Native American Calusa Indian settlement hundreds of years ago. In the mid-1800s, the site was the location of the original fort of Fort Myers and site of the officers’ quarters. In 1933, a Post Office opened on the site. It was the era when leading figures like Thomas Edison and Henry Ford had winter homes only a few minutes away. At the time, its unique neoclassical architecture and ornate decorative details, with the open-air loggia and massive columns of Florida Key limestone, was admired far and wide. The building was converted into a federal courthouse in the 1960s. Eventually, it was vacated in 1998 after a new courthouse was built nearby. The vacant building deteriorated badly and fell into disrepair.

Florida Arts, Inc. agreed to restore the building to its original magnificence, while creating a modern arts facility. Work on Phase one, restoring 10,000 square feet of the building, was completed in 2008. Later phases of the restoration have included completion of the second floor to serve as additional gallery and multi-purpose event space, plus two classrooms, kitchen, artist dressing rooms and greenroom, and office space. The last phase will restore the rooftop as a sculpture garden and reception area.

A wreath hanging between the massive pillars of the art center

Karen, Judy & Becky in front of the art center

A view of festive trees on the left-hand side of the exhibit space, which has beautiful granite flooring.

"Bee Grateful" - Sponsored by AHA! A Holistic Approach Center for Health and Harmony

“This tree is a-buzz this holiday season.”

Tree-topper for "Bee Grateful"

"Christmas in Paradise" - Sponsored by Two Men and a Truck
Two Men and a Truck also provide tree deliveries for the lucky winners of the raffles and auction.

"Cinderella: A Dream is a Wish Your Heart Makes" - Sponsored by B & I Contractors, Inc.

Cinderella’s dress with tree-topper bodice

Cinderella’s carriage and glass slipper

A lavishly-decorated wreath with its own gingerbread figures and house will be in the Silent Auction at the Tux and Trees Gala.

"Home is Where the Heart Is: An American Folk Art Tree" - Sponsored by Elaine Head
The handcrafted ornaments were created by designer Elaine Head

"Downtown for the Holidays" - Sponsored by Costco

The gifts with this tree include evenings out in downtown Fort Myers at Florida Rep and various restaurants.

"The Grande Dame" - sponsored by Pathways to Opportunity

The clients at Pathways created their "Grande Dame" entry in honor of Pathways volunteer Kelli Dame of Fox 4 News. The tree-topper is a two-foot-tall bodice with a necklace of round, gold ornaments. The pine branches act as its skirt.

Pathways, a program of Southwest Florida Goodwill Industries, serves about 40,000 clients with disabilities and other barriers to employment in Lee, Collier, Charlotte, Hendry and Glades counties. Pathways provides clients, typically in their 20s and 30s, with tools needed to achieve independence, such as handling money and paying bills, job training and placement, affordable housing, transportation assistance, and youth programs

"Mischievous Elves" - Sponsored by Southwest Florida & Lee County Fair Association

Great gifts adorn this elf-inspired tree.

"Surfing Santa" - Sponsored by the Naples Soap Company

The tree and gifts are a celebration of outdoor Florida attractions.

A fun cutout board with Martha & daughter Pam

The cutout board with Becky & Judy

"Leaping for Legos" - Sponsored by Edgewood Academy

It has building blocks and gift cards for the Lego lover.

"Let's do this: Let Home Depot Tools Help" - Sponsored by Home Depot

The package includes a large toolbox and tools. It is valued at $1,500 and won the voting for the “Most Traditional” tree. Home Depot also donates the pre-lit trees and wreaths used in the festival, as it has for the last 7 years.

"LCBA Cares" - Sponsored by the Lee County Bar Association

A Candyland board game for the whole family

A view of the venue with the booth in the middle for distributing voting ballots and raffle tickets

"Holiday Spirit" - Sponsored by the Sidney & Berne Davis Art Center

This tree gained the most attention because it really is unique. It is a custom tree form holding 118 bottles of wine and valued at $5,000. Organizers hope it brings in more at the Gala auction.

Becky with "Holiday Spirit." The tree won the “Most Creative” prize.

"The Magic of the Nutcracker" - Sponsored by Univision SW Florida

The gifts with this tree include a 49-inch flat screen TV and nutcrackers. The tree, valued at $3,600 won the “Best All-Around” award.

"Forever Wild" - Sponsored by Sun Trust Bank South

This tree suggests a cold, snowy day in the Great Outdoors.

"Forever Wild" tree-topper

Who would expect to find an eagle in a nest as a tree-topper? Overall, there were quite a few tree-toppers which were just out-of-this-world creative.

Judy & Becky in front of the "Forever Wild" tree

A view of the right-hand side of the venue

"Living the Beach Life" - Sponsored by Sun Trust Bank North

"Living the Beach Life" tree-topper

Pam, Carmen, Martha & Karen

"Sleighs and Bells" - Sponsored by the Evanchyk Family

This tree brings back childhood memories of Christmas-time

"Sleighs and Bells" tree-topper

"Sleighs and Bells" elves

"Button, Burlap and Brew" - Sponsored by LCEC
(Does this stand for Lee County Electric Cooperative?)

Sure to please those who love brews-- both coffee and beer

"Joy to the World" - Sponsored by CenturyLink

For the second year in a row, this tree, valued at $2,000, won the “Mayor’s Choice” award.

"Hat's off to you, Mr. Edison" - Sponsored by Norris Home Furnishings

The tree comes with a custom console recovered from one of Thomas Edison's factories in Wisconsin.

"Winter Wonderland" - Sponsored by Riverside Realty LLC/Staging Matters

"Cookie Cutter Christmas" - Sponsored by Hotel Indigo

"A Very Beary Christmas" - Sponsored by Goodwill Industries of Southwest Florida

This tree was decked with all kinds of teddy bears, with tall boxes holding bears surrounding the tree. All of the bears were donated by members of the community. It will be the last tree auctioned. Typically, several groups bid together on the tree, donating the hundreds of bears to children's groups. The tree sold for as high as $13,000 one year.