Annual Gig Harbor Christmas tree result of strong partnership between city, JBLM

The annual Gig Harbor tree lighting ceremony will ring in the holiday season at 5 p.m. Saturday (Dec. 5) in Skansie Brothers Park.

This 50-foot-tall tree is the product of a decades-long partnership between the city of Gig Harbor and Joint Base Lewis-McChord, specifically the 201st Battlefield Surveillance Brigade, which has again donated the city’s Christmas tree this year.

Greg Foote, Gig Harbor’s Public Works superintendent, oversaw the project of cutting down and transporting the tree from JBLM to Gig Harbor.

“It’s always kind of a fun adventure,” he said of the tree cutting. “We look forward to it every year.”

There are several steps involved with selecting a tree, said 1st Lt. Mark Wolf, public affairs officer for the 201st.

The steps include ensuring there are no military operations in the surrounding area, checking that wildlife — such as woodpeckers — would not be disturbed by the tree’s removal and selecting trees that fall within the required dimensions for the city.

Once all of these steps are completed, the Gig Harbor Public Works Department can come to the base on an assigned day to cut down Gig Harbor’s Christmas tree.

The actual cutting down of the Christmas tree has a bit of a ceremony around it, Wolf said.

In this ceremony, a soldier in the 201st takes the first chop, followed by a member of the Gig Harbor crew.

“It’s symbolic with our partnership together,” Wolf said.

Col. Constantin E. Nicolet, the brigade’s commander, made the first ceremonial chop for the 201st, and Foote followed to represent Gig Harbor.

The tree was fell with less ceremony and more practicality — with the use of a chainsaw.

The cut tree was lifted by crane onto one of the city’s trailers and transported with the aid of a police escort — courtesy of Gig Harbor Police Lt. Fred Douglas — back to Gig Harbor, Foote said.

Back at the city, a crane was used to lift the tree into a pre-dug and lined hole in Skansie Brothers Park, where it was then surrounded by gravel and other supports to keep it in place.

“Now we’re in decorating mode,” said Foote, estimating that the tree will be decorated with more than 3,200 lights.

Public Works crews have been hard at work decorating both the tree and the city in preparation for the holidays.

The partnership between the 201st and the city through the Community Connector Program extends beyond the annual Christmas tree.

“We do all kinds of different events with the City of Gig Harbor,” Wolf said.

These events range from the 201st participating in National Night Out, Veterans Day events with local high schools to naming Mayor Jill Guernsey an honorary commander of the brigade in June.

Foote agrees that the partnership between the city and the base is a good one.

“It’s always fun working with them over there,” he said.

The Gig Harbor tree will be lit at 5:30 p.m. Saturday (Dec. 5) at Skansie Brothers Park by Santa and Mayor Pro Tem Tim Payne, with a lift from the Gig Harbor Fire Department’s ladder truck.

The event will begin at 5 p.m. with music from The Dickens Carolers and free refreshments will be available in the Skansie Net Shed, provided by the Gig Harbor Downtown Waterfront Alliance.

Santa will stay in the park following the tree lighting to greet children.

This story was originally published December 2, 2015 at 10:08 AM with the headline "Annual Gig Harbor Christmas tree result of strong partnership between city, JBLM."