The Festival of Trees is being put on by the Transfer Organization for Student Success or T.O.S.S. Organizations around campus volunteered to decorate a tree for the Festival contest. After the contest these decorated Christmas trees will be donated to families in the area who cannot afford a tree this Christmas.
“It is really unique,” said sophomore English major Casandra Ruiz. “It is helping out families that wouldn’t otherwise have a tree.”
Fifteen organizations chose to participate in the inaugural year of the Festival of Trees. Most of the Christmas trees were donated and thus only four of the organizations that entered had to purchase their own tree. According to T.OS.S. president Candice Copelin the idea for this event came from T.O.S.S. secretary Jessie McCllelan. McCllelan got the idea from a university in Ohio. The organization felt that this event would be a “perfect way for us to get out the word that West Texas A&M cares.”
Ruiz said, “It makes campus more festive.”
T.O.S.S. hopes to grow this event each year and has already spoken with local stores who said that they would donate next year if this year’s Festival of trees was successful. The voting for the contest ends today, December 3rd. The Eveline Rivers Foundation will help with the donations of the fifteen trees to the families after the contest is over.
“It’s an awesome feeling, and we are so excited we could be the ones to head this project and make it bigger and better every year,” said Copelin. “I would like to thank Brandy Carr, our sponsor. She did a lot of hard work, as did the members and officers of T.O.S.S.”
For more information on the Transfer Organization for Student Success see the C.O.R.E. (Campus Organizations, Resources and Entertainment) office in the Jack B. Kelly student center room 103. Those interested can get into contact with Matt Maples, Associate Director of Student Activities, at [email protected].
