Kiwanis Club of Grantville-Allied Gardens January 2015
“Serving Our Community since 1960”
www.alliedgardenskiwanis.org
Sluggish Sales Sap Tree Lot Some members of our club like to celebrate the opening of the Tree Lot each year. Others celebrate more when it closes. Although G.A.G. Kiwanis managed to sell close to a thousand trees this year, sales were slower than anticipated. At the conclusion of the final weekend of sales, more than 150 trees could still be found on the lot in various stages of preparation. Fifty-nine of the remaining trees were donated to the military families of MCAS Miramar, thanks to our connections with a past club president, Luisa Moore. Another twenty went to The Grove Church, and a dozenplus were donated to a food bank in Serra Mesa through the efforts of District 7 City Council Representative Scott Sherman and staffer Liz Saidkhanian (people picking up free food, they reasoned, might also be in need of a free Carry On, Circle K: A smiling Kristoff Aragon is more than happy to carry a Douglas Plantation Christmas Tree). fir at the G.A.G. Kiwanis Christmas Tree Lot. Student volunteers from SDSU Circle K generously While the club did make enough to cover contributed more than 300 service hours at the Lot, despite final exams and holiday travel plans. expenses, overall sales were down this year due to several contributing factors. Prices skyrocketed this year throughout the industry, leading to a very noticeable difference in the cost of the Douglas Plantation firs. A shorter selling season (due to a late Thanksgiving holiday) meant less time for people to shop for trees, and of course, there was some inclement weather to keep customers at bay. Still, many of the “regulars” that we see each and every year were there as usual to pick up their Kiwanis Christmas Tree in support of the Grantville-Allied Gardens community. As the inventory of trees dwindled (as did the prices), there was some concern from members who thought the lot closed too soon, and that we should still be selling trees right up until Christmas Eve. As it turned out, they may have had a point – during the club’s customary Tree Lot Closing Party on Monday, December 22nd, no fewer than fourteen trees departed with customers looking for a last-minute bargain. There were many lessons to be learned at the Tree Lot this year – whether or not Kiwanis members shall return for another year of tree Cut, Rinse, Repeat: At left, John Crawford takes a chainsaw to one of the remaining trees on the sales is a discussion for another day. last day of sales; Earlier, Doc Yelvington carefully tended to the trees with garden hose in hand.
Mid-Year Conference:
A Holiday Hello From Cloti Simpelo
Helping Mom and Dad at the Tree Lot
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