Prince Frederick, MD  – For the 27th and final year Calvert Hospice presented the Festival of Trees. The event was held Friday, Nov. 27 and Saturday, Nov. 28 at St. John Vianney Family Life Center and Vianney Room in Prince Frederick. In the past, the festival was a three-day event.

On display, this year were 19 four-and-one-half-foot Christmas trees and 34 six-and-one-half-foot trees. Twenty-five of the trees were available for purchase through an auction. Each tree was sponsored by a business, organization, school or individual and decorated by volunteers.

The theme of the 2015 Festival of Trees was “A Season to Remember.” Nine trees were dedicated in memory of an individual. One tree was displayed in honor of U.S. servicemen and servicewomen. Over 70 Poinsettias were on display, and most of them were dedicated in memory of lost loved ones.

In addition to the Yuletide displays, Festival of Trees also included live entertainment, vendors, crafters, and Santa Claus. A quilt handmade by the Calvert Queen Bees of the Calvert Quilt Shop was displayed and awarded to the winner of a raffle.

While Calvert Hospice previously announced that this year’s Festival of Trees would be its last, the organization’s interim director indicated that something to fill the void is being planned. “We at Calvert Hospice are committed to being ‘the community’s hospice’ and want to assure everyone that we will continue our Service of Remembrance in future years,” Jean E.S. Fleming stated. “We also wish to reassure everyone that we have already started creating a new holiday event that we hope will become a new tradition for our region.”

In 2014 Calvert Hospice Festival of Trees had over 3,500 visitors and made more than $75,000 to help support hospice programs. Figures for this year’s event were not available as this story was being filed.

Calvert Hospice is a nonprofit with a mission to provide quality care for patients facing a life-limiting illness and help for the families of those patients. More information about Calvert Hospice is available at www.calverthospice.org

Contact Marty Madden at marty.madden@thebaynet.com