December 7 – Christmas spirit and school spirit go hand in hand this time of year for St. Mary’s School in Moscow.
Every year since the early 1980s, parents and teachers have braved the winter cold to sell Christmas trees as part of a fundraising campaign to support the school. Parent Bonnie Wilmoth is leading this year’s tree sale in the Tri-State Outfitters parking lot.
“It’s an opportunity to support local students and celebrate the holidays,” she said Friday.
The school hopes to sell almost 500 trees, 150 Christmas wreaths and 2,000 raffle tickets. The raffle is sponsored by ICCU and United Country Real Estate.
Noble, Douglas and large silver firs, ranging from 1.5 to 4 meters high, can be seen. Wilmoth said the trees are supplied by Triple T Nursery in Careywood, Idaho, and Oregon-based Premium Christmas Trees.
The Christmas tree sale is one of three major fundraisers that the school organizes to support students. Wilmoth said student tuition only pays 40% of school costs, so fundraising is needed to supplement the school’s budget.
Wilmoth said selling Christmas trees is not as easy as it used to be in the 1990s, when St. Mary’s sold 1,000 trees every year. The popularity of artificial Christmas trees and a tree shortage in 2017 have put a damper on sales in recent years. However, Wilmoth said this year’s sales are already off to a good start.
