A Christmas forest graced the Marathon Garden Club with the 12th annual Zonta Festival of Trees on Dec. 7-10. Dozens of trees strung with adornments ranging from lottery tickets to flip flops – even one with an 8-foot stuffed giraffe – vied for the affections, and votes, of visitors to the four-day festival. A Lunch with the Grinch and Cookies with Santa event for children and families closed out the festival.
“This year was an excellent venue that we will be returning to next year with a stellar amount of decadently and creatively decorated trees,” said Zonta president Erin Arnett. Winners of the decorating contest included First Horizon Bank West Branch’s “Country Christmas” (first), First Horizon Main Branch’s “Movie Night” (second) and the Daughters of the American Revolution’s “’Tis the Season for Reading.”
Though entrance to the festival was free, visitors were offered the opportunity to buy raffle tickets in the hopes of winning a donated tree. Proceeds raised will go to furthering Zonta’s mission of empowering women and children in the Marathon community through service.
