The day after Thanksgiving marks a Sanibel-Captiva Lions Club holiday tradition – Christmas tree fundraiser. The former gas station at Bailey’s Shopping Center, 2477 Periwinkle Way, will turn into a wonderland of premium Frasier Firs freshly cut and shipped on refrigerated trucks from Michigan.
Approximately 210 trees, delivered to the old gas station facing Periwinkle Way on Friday, Nov. 23, are available for purchase seven days each week, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. They will remain on sale through Christmas Eve or until stocks are gone.
The trees, all grown in Michigan, are between 5 and 10 feet in height. Cliff Nolan, organizer of the sale, said, “We have always had good luck with Michigan trees. They are healthy and full and beautiful. Buyers will be very happy with them.”
Proceeds from the sale go to the various charities that the Lions Club’s supports.
The islands’ Lions Club began selling fresh trees more than 40 years ago. It has since grown to become one of the Club’s largest fund-raising events. As Sanibel Captiva Lions Club President Bob Kern says, “The entire club pitches in, from set up to selling, which ensures 100 percent of the revenue goes directly to the charitable work of the Lions Club.”
Lions meet the first and third Wednesday of every month at the Sanibel Community House, where the club was charted in December 1967.