Festival of Trees

Each November for the past thirty years the University Hospital Foundation has organized a holiday fundraiser called the Festival of Trees. This year the festival ran from Thursday November 27 to Sunday November 30, at the Shaw Conference Centre. Apparently over 30,000 guests and 2000 volunteers attend the festival each year, and over the past 29 years it has raised $16.5 million for healthcare-related causes.

Tickets this year were $10 for adults and $5 for youth, with proceeds supporting the purchase of a Gamma Knife for the University of Alberta Hospital's neurosurgery department. This noninvasive radiosurgical method uses cobalt-60 radiation to treat brain tumours, arteriovenous malformations, and trigeminal neuralgia, and is presently only available in Winnipeg, Toronto, and Sherbrooke.

Riding the long escalators down through the Shaw Conference Centre's indoor rainforest to get to the festival hall, I realized why it had taken a good twenty minutes to find parking -- the place was packed! Today is the fourth and final day of the festival, and apparently the busiest one yet.

Shaw Conference Centre -- a sunny glass box of escalators, rainforest plants, and waterfalls

I picked up a name tag and flashing snowflake necklace from the volunteer table and went off in search of the Gamma Knife display, where I would be volunteering. It wasn't hard to find, heralded by a long line of curious kids waiting to take a turn lying in the mock Gamma Knife. Dr. Keith Aronyk, a neurosurgeon involved in the development of the future Edmonton brain imaging centre, which the Gamma Knife will be a part of, constructed this impressive actual-sized model in his garage. With its flashing lights, Star Wars music, and adjustable OR table, it was clearly the centre of interest of the display.

the mock gamma knife and an example of an immobilizing head frame

Though I spent most of the afternoon at the Gamma Knife display, I did get a chance to wander amongst the hundred-some beautifully decorated Christmas trees, wreaths, and gingerbread creations.

With moving snowflakes projected on the floor, twinkling lights suspended from the ceiling, sweet treats for sale at the concession, and Christmas music ringing out from the stage, the cavernous hall really did feel festive.

In keeping with this year's Let It Snow theme, a giant snow globe was inflated in the middle of the hall for children to play in. The festival's gift shop was doing excellent business and even some of the decorated trees were for sale.

With the city blanketed in snow and December 1 arriving tomorrow, I'm sure people are eager to get into the holiday spirit -- and attending the Festival of Trees was an excellent way to do that, while supporting a good cause.

a sunny southward view over the river valley from the Shaw Conference Centre