Shopping for a holiday tree is a time-honored ritual, but the Essex Auxiliary of the Child & Family Agency of Southeastern Connecticut is providing another way to do it. There’s no trekking to a farm to cut your own, no combing through a lot to try to decide among the myriad of displayed evergreens, no debating whether this is finally the year to buy an artificial tree.

Instead, it is possible to get an individually designed and fully decorated tree and benefit the Child & Family Agency of Southeastern Connecticut at the same time by buying tickets to win one of 25 trees created by local merchants or local artists. Themes used in decorating include An Essex Village Christmas; Star Light, Star Bright; and By the Sea, a nautically inspired tree. One tree will be decorated with ornaments from Swarovski, the well-known manufacturer of jewelry and a host of other objects from watches to home accessories in crystal.

The Connecticut River Museum’s tree will focus on trains and railroad paraphernalia, a reminder of its popular holiday train exhibit created by Old Saybrook artist Steve Cryan. Natural Connecticut, designed by Essex resident Susan Peterson, will feature 12 Christmas balls with hand-panted birds on them. On two occasions Peterson has volunteered as part of a team that decorates the White House every year for the holidays (see her Person of the Week profile on page 2).

The artificial trees, most of which are 4 ½ feet tall and are pre-lighted, will have decorations wired firmly in place so they can be used year after year.

Trees will be displayed in front of participating stores on Essex Main Street right after Thanksgiving. For merchants who don’t have room to display trees on the street, the Essex Auxiliary of Child & Family has arranged a collection of trees in an empty storefront converted into a pop-up gallery at 5 Essex Main Street from Monday, Dec. 5 to Saturday, Dec. 10. Tickets, which must be bought in books of five for $20, can be deposited in boxes by every tree. The winner of each tree will be drawn at 4 p.m. on Dec. 10 as part of the annual Essex Holiday Stroll.

According to Barbara Burgess, who with Connie Connor is one of the co-chairs of the event, the tree festival was inspired by the auxiliary’s desire to have a fundraiser on the year the group didn’t have its Christmas house tour, a biennial event.

“People brainstormed and came up with the idea of the Festival of Trees,” she said.

When the Essex Child & Family Auxiliary (CFA) representatives suggested to the Essex Board of Trade that the two groups partner in creating the event, Burgess said the reception by the merchants was enthusiastic.

“It seemed that everyone wanted to do it,” she said. “We were delighted by the enthusiasm. The merchants really jumped in.”

CFA bought the trees, and the businesses and craftspeople then have the responsibility for crafting a unique look for their individual creations.

The story of the CFA goes back more than 200 years to 1809, with the founding of the Women’s Benevolent Society of Hartford. Today, the agency serves more than 15,000 clients a year in programs ranging from after-school care to mental health counseling for both children and families, family violence counseling, teen pregnancy counseling, and parent education. It is the largest private, non-profit provider of children’s services in southeastern Connecticut.

The funds raised by the six local auxiliaries associated with the organization provide flexibility, according to both Lovelace and Burgess, because they are not earmarked for any specific programs but can be used as necessary to support any of the agency’s programs.

There was a time, Lovelace conceded, when membership in child and family auxiliaries could imply an atmosphere of exclusivity, but, she added, today the situation is entirely different. The Essex auxiliary welcomes new members committed to working for the agency’s goal of supporting children and families.

“The times have changed and we embrace anyone who comes and can give as much or as little time as they have,” she said. “The auxiliary has changed; society has changed, our world has changed.”

Burgess echoed Lovelace’s sentiments.

“Absolutely everybody is invited to join. We always want to bring in new people,” she said.

If the Festival of Trees works well on this first effort, Burgess said that it, too, could become a regular biennial event, held on the years when the Essex Auxiliary is not running its popular Christmas house tour.

“We would really love to see this event grow,” she said.

Festival of Trees

The Festival of Trees to benefit the Child & Family Auxiliary of Southeastern Connecticut begins on Essex Main Street go up right after Thanksgiving. The Pop-up Gallery of Trees runs Monday, Dec. 5 to Saturday, Dec. 10 at 5 Main Street in Essex. To bid on trees, books of tickets, $20 for five, are available at local merchants. The drawing for tree winners will be held during the Essex Holiday Stroll on Dec. 10 at 4 p.m. Winners do not have to be present. For more information, visit www.childandfamilyagency.org.