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A Trip To The Tree Tent Helps Church Help Others

Tampa Tribune photo by KENNETH KNIGHT

Tent supervisor Craig Thomas and another volunteer examine the Fraser firs at the St. James United Methodist Church Annual Christmas Tree Sale on Bruce B. Downs Boulevard.

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KENNETH KNIGHT

kknight@tampatrib.com

Published: December 4, 2008

TAMPA PALMS - While holiday shoppers streamed into malls for bargains the day after Thanksgiving, Michelle Jimenez-Rivera and her family searched for a Christmas tree under the big top on Bruce B. Downs Boulevard.

They fell in love with a $75, 8-foot Fraser fir at the St. James United Methodist Church Annual Christmas Tree Sale.

"If I am going to pay that much for a Christmas tree, I want it up as long as possible,'' Jimenez-Rivera said, flashing a smile.

The trip to the Christmas tree tent at St. James has become an annual tradition for the Rivera family, who live in Meadow Pointe, just north of County Line Road.

Jimenez-Rivera; her husband, Melvin Rivera; and the couple's daughters, Anna, 8, and Ella, 4; showed up on opening day to choose among the top picks. As the girls grow, wading down rows of freshly-cut Christmas trees has become a fun family outing.

But that's not the only reason.

"We like coming here because it supports the ministry," Jimenez-Rivera said. "We passed at least two or three, maybe four tents, between here and [Meadow Pointe]. Our church doesn't have one."

The family attends St. Mark the Evangelist Catholic Church on Cross Creek Boulevard.

Stories like the Riveras are being repeated throughout the area this holiday season. Despite the sour economy, buying a Christmas tree appears to be a holiday tradition some cash-strapped Americans are unwilling to give up.

St. James sold 25 trees from 10:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. opening day. As is tradition, Saddlebrook Resort in Wesley Chapel bought the first dozen.

"We were nervous about how it would do with the economy getting bad," tent supervisor Craig Thomas said.

Seasonal Christmas tree stands dotting area street corners and commercial parking lots appear to be rewarding ventures for churches and other nonprofit organizations willing to invest a few thousand dollars for tree orders with the hope of turning a quick buck.

The men's ministry at St. James, which operates the annual Christmas tree tent, ordered 437 trees from North Carolina for a 17-day run. They hope to sell them all by Sunday.

"When all the trees are gone, it's all done," volunteer Debbie Salinger said.

In its 12th year, the sale is the annual major fundraiser for the church's Helping Hands ministry, which feeds the homeless and needy.

Prices at the St. James tent range from $45 for the 5- and 6-foot trees to $124 for the 11-footers, which are popular in houses with high ceilings. The prices are comparable to those at other nearby tents.

Based on first-day sales, the volunteers are cautiously optimistic.

"It's really hard to gauge this area because you have college students who want smaller trees for apartments and [homeowners] who want the 11-foot ceiling crushers," Thomas said. "But sales on the first day are pretty good, not that you can gauge it on the other 16 days."

St. James is a busy place this time of year. Its members also staff Metropolitan Ministries' New Tampa Donation Drop Off Center tent, which is pitched a short distance from the Christmas tree tent.

After a successful Thanksgiving food drive, the donation drop off tent is back up and running from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. daily through Dec. 23.

The volunteers set a goal to collect 5,000 toys and Christmas presents for infants to teens. They also want to gather 27,000 pounds of food to assist the nonprofit agency in its commitment to help 25,000 area residents this holiday season.

Reporter Kenneth Knight can be reached at (813) 865-4842.

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