SKOWHEGAN — Warm temperatures on the final day of November were no match for the spirit of the Christmas season Wednesday as crews raised a 28-foot balsam fir tree downtown.
It came just in time for Skowhegan’s annual Holiday Stroll, which starts today with a display at Redington Home and gets under way in earnest with a parade at 7 p.m. Friday and continues through Sunday.
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The tree, which had been cut from Bryant Laplante’s tree farm in Cornville earlier in the day, was hauled on a flatbed truck to the corner of Commercial Street and Madison Avenue by workers from McCarthy Enterprises of Skowhegan. Tom McCarthy, whose crews demolished buildings that had stood at that corner in October, paid a nominal fee for the tree and donated the trucking costs.
Skowhegan Highway Department crews, under the direction of Road Commissioner Gregory Dore, finished the job, lifting the tree in place and into a metal collar buried in the ground. The Christmas tree will be decorated Friday with thousands of white LED lights, said Jennifer Olsen, executive director of Main Street Skowhegan.
“It’s wonderful,” Olsen said watching tree go up. “The community had really banded together to make this happen in a short amount of time. It’s just an added bonus to the Holiday Stroll festivities and we’re really excited about it.”
The land where the Skowhegan Electronics building and two other shops once stood is now owned by the Somerset Economic Development Corp., which gave approval for the Christmas tree. Sponsors for the tree include the Skowhegan Rotary Club, Semper Fidelis woman’s club, Hight Chevrolet and the “gala girls” at Skowhegan Fun Raisers, Olsen said. Electrician Lee York has donated his time to get power to the lights and David Hart, who owns the building next door, has offered the power source, she said.
“It’s incredible having a tree here,” said Cory King, executive director of Skowhegan Area Chamber of Commerce. “It’s taking a space that at one time was a bit of an eyesore for the downtown and making it into a beautiful space for the holidays. It shows what good work can happen when businesses and local organizations combine on an effort good holiday cheer.”
Doug Harlow — 612-2367
dharlow@centralmaine.com
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