It’s beginning to feel a lot like Christmas, especially now since Excelsior’s main street has between 20 and 25 new residents, each of them waiting anxiously for a visit from you and a few ornaments that you won’t be needing. I am talking about the small, 3-to-5-foot balsam trees that “with your help” will be decorated by the public, bagged and tied up by volunteers of the Ridgewood Church, and then delivered by the Excelsior Fire District to a formerly homeless Veteran and his family!
In 1996, a group of people from the Excelsior-Lake Minnetonka Chamber of Commerce and the Excelsior Fire District gathered at a coffee shop on Oak Street in Excelsior to talk about a way to give Christmas trees to those in need. That was the beginning of the “Giving Tree Project” 29 years ago. On Friday, November 28th the trees, which have been purchased from the Garden Patch at a discounted price and donated by the main financial sponsor, Gary’s First Class Car Care, are then placed outside Excelsior businesses all along Water Street, waiting to be adorned with donated decorations from local organizations and individuals.
The “Giving Tree Project” beneficiary is the Minnesota Assistance Council for Veterans (MACV), who build and donates approximately 20-25 new homes each year to Veterans who are homeless in the Twin Cities area. The merchants and business owners provide electricity for the lights and give the trees TLC when needed. The Lions Club donates the tree stands, and then, until December 9th, each tree is gifted with new or gently used ornaments. Handmade tree trimmings are always received with gratitude. Gary Ringate, the Mayor of Excelsior, says, “'The Giving Tree Project' is one that begins here in the village of Excelsior, and twelve days later finishes up at the Target Center, but it does take a village to pull it off!”
In conjunction with these two benefits, a third benefit, “Donations and Toy Drive,” will gladly be accepting unwrapped toys to be given to this year’s recipients on December 10th. You may place these ornaments on a tree yourself or drop them off at Gary’s First Class Car Care at 366 Highway #7 or at the Excelsior Fire Station #1 at 24100 Smithtown Road; both locations are in Excelsior. Donated gifts are also welcomed at these two locations from November 28th through December 9th.
For many families here in Minnesota, 2025 has been a difficult year to keep their spirits up. For each person waiting in line at a coffee shop, there’s someone somewhere sitting on a cold bench without a cup of coffee to warm his nearly frozen hands. As Christmas draws nearer, we are reminded of “how the Holidays used to feel.” Back in the days when we perhaps took for granted the presence of our family members and the blessings of good friends and good health. Suddenly, when they are no longer with us, we must look for a way to bring joy to others, even if only a shared smile to a stranger. My mother taught me that it’s a greater feeling to give than to receive. As a child, I thought she had that one backwards. As an adult, I know she got it right! The holidays can be bittersweet due to the absence of loved ones. Adopting one of these trees to decorate in memory of a special person can be cathartic.
For more information on how to adopt a tree, reach out to Fire Marshall, Kellie Murphy-Ringate, at kmurphyringate@excelsiorfire.org for details. For additional information, go to the website: www.excelsiorfire.org.
Similar to the Grinch, sadness can sneak up on us at any time. One moment we’re fine, and the next we feel alone or unseen. Finding someone to do something with seems too great a task. Yet a tiny voice nags you to “do something or go somewhere!” At times like these, I am remembering the lyrics to the song “Downtown,” written by British composer Tony Hatch and sung by Petula Clark in 1964. The song is all about trying to “give yourself a chance to live a better life.” Perhaps these lyrics may urge you to go “Downtown in Excelsior to hang an ornament on a tree?”
“And you may find somebody kind to help and understand you? Someone who is just like you and needs a gentle hand to guide them along. So maybe I’ll see you there, we can forget all our troubles, forget all our cares, and go downtown. Things will be great when you’re downtown. Don’t wait a minute more, downtown. There’s a Christmas tree waiting for you!"