Festival of Trees offers chance to support charity

November is flying by and it will soon be time to deck the halls with boughs of holly -- falala la, la la la la la.

Next week's Thanksgiving, the traditional time for trimming the Christmas tree, if you've been able to resist the temptation so far.

If you're like many of us, you may dread the supposedly joyful chore of decorating the Yuletide tree. At the same time, you don't want to be distracted from giving to worthy causes, one of Christmas's finer traditions.

The McCook Area Chamber of Commerce is offering a solution for both problems.

The third annual "Festival of Trees" is set for Saturday evening, Dec. 7, at the Keystone Business Center.

Businesses, organizations and private individuals are invited to sign up to decorate their tree or wreath for auction Dec. 7, with 100 percent of the proceeds going to the charity they designate.

Deadline to sign up is Dec. 2, by calling the chamber at (308) 345-3200, or emailing chamber director Tacie Fawver at tacie@aboutmccook.com.

The festival got off to a good start in 2011, but a late start and blizzard last year cut into the project's momentum.

There is no entry fee for those who wish to submit a tree.

"The only cost is the decorations, which can be as fancy and costly or as simple and economical as the decorators desire," Fawver said.

But if you'd like a beautiful, well-designed Christmas tree for a minimum investment of time, plus the warm feeling that comes from supporting a worthy charity, the Festival of Trees may be just the ticket.