Festival of Trees lights up Bigfork Museum
<p>Twelve trees are decorated in differnt themes for the Festival of Trees at the Bigfork Museum of Art and History. The trees will be auctioned off at the Festival of Trees Gala Friday from 5-8. $300 of the auction proceeds will be donated to the Abbie Foundation. The rest of the funds raised will be used to support the museum.</p>
Christmas is here at the Bigfork Museum of Art and History.
The museum’s 4th annual Festival of Trees is on display and will culminate in a Champagne Gala on Friday where the trees and other Christmas decorations will be auctioned off. A portion of the proceeds will be donated to the Abbie Shelter, which provides services for victims of domestic violence.
The museum first did a festival of trees in the 1980s, museum director Marnie Forbis said, but they stopped doing it and Flathead Valley Community College took it over. Four years ago the Bigfork Museum took the festival back, and has used it every year as a chance to give back to another area non-profit.
In past years the museum would decorate a tree specifically for the chosen non-profit, and whatever that tree sold for is the amount that would be donated. This year the museum is doing it a little differently, and is just donating $300 to the Abbie Shelter.
“It might not be that much, but it’s something more than they had,” Forbis said.
The auction is live and silent, and silent auction items can be bid on now through the live auction Friday.
The 12 trees vary in size from three feet tall to seven feet tall, and were decorated in themes such as the Grinch who Stole Christmas, Santa’s, Gingerbread Men and Budding Artist. The trees were largely decorated by Forbis and Dee Dee Cooper.
In addition to artificial trees and decorations there will be live wreaths, and a painting donated by Nancy Cawdry for the auction.
The Museum asks that winners of the trees leave them through Saturday so they can be viewed during the Holiday Artwalk.
There will also be a raffle for two baskets of goodies and a Best of Bigfork Basket, valued at over $500 featuring items from the Jug Tree, Black Cap Preserves, huckleberry topping and chokecherry syrup from Eva Gates Preserves, a night stay at Bridge Street Cottages, a vintage Santa ornament, bowls from the museum gift store and gift certificates from the Bigfork Inn, Echo Lake Café, Bigfork Base Camp, Buffalo Dance Gallery, Schafer’s Restaurant and Riley’s Pub.
The Festival of Trees is sponsored by Nikki and Everit Sliter, Walter Kuhn and Mrs. Peterson.
The Gala is Friday from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.