This year's Festival of Lights attractions slate has a new entry - and it requires community participation.
The Field of Joy will be a forest of Christmas trees on Murphy Field. Individuals, businesses, churches and other organizations will provide each tree and its decorations. In center field, a 40-foot tree provided by the city of Fulton will tower above the rest.
The city of Fulton and the Callaway County Salvation Army Service Unit dreamed up the idea.
"We were trying to come up with something that's different," said Glenda Fitch, chairman of the Salvation Army service unit serving Callaway County. "My response when (board member) Pam Phelps suggested this was 'People are going to pay us to put up a tree?'"
However, Fitch found the Parks and Recreation Department was on board, and so were community members.
"When I talked to someone at the Church of Christ yesterday, the first thing they asked was 'Can we do a tree in memory of someone?'" she said.
Community-sponsored trees must be between 4 and 10 feet tall and can be real or artificial (including wire trees). Themed decorations are encouraged within good taste, and people are welcome to sponsor trees in memory of individuals.
"I'm hoping the high schools will take the idea and run with it," Fitch said.
She mentioned the Salvation Army's tree will be decorated in red.
Individuals and nonprofit organizations pay $25 to place their trees, while business sponsorships cost $50. Funds raised benefit the Salvation Army.
Sign up by Nov. 15. The festival begins at 5:30 p.m. Dec. 1 with the lighting of the Wish Tree in Veterans Park. After that, it will be open nightly until Jan. 2. Sponsors must reclaim their trees by that date.
Contact the Parks and Recreation Department at 573-592-3190 for more information or to sponsor a tree.