Archive: Around Town

Nick Graham"Kay and Dick, I was just informed that I have a very large package awaiting pickup in the squadron that smells 'piney'." That e-mail came last December from Nick Graham, who was stationed in Qatar at the time. graham is a friend of Dick and Kay Moore's son, and they decided to send him a real Christmas tree from their tree farm.

Later he wrote, "Just got the tree and set it up it was in really good shape when it got here and the building smells terrific now! My commander was completely shocked to see that we actually got a real tree over here. We dressed it up appropriately. Thanks again and merry Xmas."

This year Kay Moore's ears pricked up when she heard Sharon Bowman asking their church's congregation to keep Travis Potter, a friend of her son Brian who is stationed in Iraq, in their prayers. She approached Ms. Bowman about sending him a tree, and it was mailed last Friday (11/18). "We actually don't celebrate until he says he has received it, says Ms. Moore. "It's not a done deal until he gets it!"

Sharon Bowman e-mailed this picture to Iraq, showing  the team that grew and harvested the Christmas tree they mailed to Travis Potter last Friday.  Pictured from left to right: Kay Moore, Richard Moore, Howard Longhouse, Ken Henry & Pete Larson

Mailing a live tree to the Middle East can be trickier than sending your gifts to Aunt Bessie in Idaho. Last year the Moores worked with Lansing postman Bob Sturm to figure out how big the tree could be and best to mail it. They decided that a tightly baled five foot tree would fit in a box sized to the Postal Services specifications of a maximum of 108 inches when you add the girth and length of the package. She also e-mailed Hillary Clinton to get advice on mailing the tree.

The Moores' Christmas tree giving doesn't end with these soldiers. They also donate trees for the Trees for Troops program, sponsored by The Christmas Tree Farmers Association of New York, the Christmas SPIRIT Foundation, the National Christmas Tree Association, FedEx Corp. (NYSE:FDX) and New Holland. Dick Moore is Vice President of the organization and Moore Tree farm is the collection point for New York State. The program will collect and deliver approximately 3,500 freshly harvested trees to military bases in the United States between November 28 and December 9.

Moore Tree Farm covers 35 acres around Auburn Road (Rt. 34) in Lansing

The Fed Ex truck will arrive to be loaded at the Moore Tree Farm at 8:00 am on Tuesday, November 29.

Between 25 and 30 million real Christmas trees are enjoyed in the US every year, and Christmas tree farming has grown into a billion dollar industry. About 21,000 farmers grow the trees in the US and Canada, and it takes about 15 years to grow the average Christmas tree.

The Moores sell trees both retail and wholesale year round, with buyers using them for landscaping and potted plants as well as Christmas trees. The Lansing Parks Department has purchased trees from the Moores to replace old-growth trees in the parks around town. Their 35 acre farm is open to people who want to cut their own trees, or who just want to purchase one for Christmas.

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