DELACOMBE man Jeff Smith had been adorning his front yard with Christmas decorations for about two decades, when last year he did something different.<\/p>\n
With the passing of one friend\u2019s fiance, and another\u2019s teenage daughter leading into the holiday season, Mr Smith utilised his large bottlebrush as a memorial tree, placing baubles on the limbs to commemorate lost loved ones.<\/p>\n
Starting last year with two weeks before Christmas, he\u2019s continuing the initiative this year, this time putting up decorations and signage in mid-November.<\/p>\n
The number of baubles have grown from about 10 last year to about 50, and Mr Smith said it\u2019s giving people the opportunity to remember their loved ones during Christmas.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s all about commemorating the people we\u2019ve loved and lost at probably the hardest time of the year for everyone,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cPersonally, there\u2019s one up for my mum who died 27 years ago, one for my nan and pop, some of my housemate\u2019s, and one for my daughter\u2019s grandparent.\u201d<\/p>\n
Most of the memorial tree\u2019s accompanying lights are blue or purple to signify commemoration.<\/p>\n
Having come across Mr Smith\u2019s Christmas tree initiative via social media, Canadian resident Sonia Crawford decorated her property\u2019s blackwood tree around the same time as him after reaching out for permission.<\/p>\n
Although joining the initiative this Christmas, she said the tree has long held a significance for her.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy tree was actually planted by SIDS and Kids at Mount Blowhard Primary School for the loss of my baby 18 years ago,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019d go out there and decorate it with trinkets and one summer it was starting to die so I dug it up and planted it in my front yard. When it started to grow, I\u2019d lost another baby, and it started growing two stems.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019d ended up losing a third baby, and my son had accidentally ran over the tree when it was a foot tall and it split into three trunks.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is good because Jeff\u2019s on one side of town and I\u2019m on the other. It\u2019ll be an amazing journey to see how many friendships are made through this.\u201d<\/p>\n
Unlike Mr Smith\u2019s baubles, Ms Crawford is emulating the Celtic Clootie well tradition, decorating her tree with ribbons inscribed with messages left for those who have passed.<\/p>\n
About 20 ribbons have been written and tied so far, and Ms Crawford has left materials out for people come and decorate the tree themselves.<\/p>\n
Having never met Ms Crawford prior and since becoming friends, Mr Smith said the memorial trees are also about connecting over shared experiences.<\/p>\n
\u201cI walked outside the other day and saw a gentleman reading our sign for it. We stood there for 10, 15 minutes chatting away and he\u2019d lost his partner two years ago and had been struggling.<\/p>\n
\u201cA woman from America saw this on the older artists\u2019 network on Facebook and asked if we could put a bauble up for her husband.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe told me \u2018My husband always wanted to travel to Australia. Now he\u2019s there in a way\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n
Solidifying the effort further with the creation of the Christmas Memorial Trees Project Facebook group, Mr Smith said he hopes more people will take up the initiative.<\/p>\n
He\u2019s thinking of including involving suicide prevention networks for potential fundraisers, and lobbying to the City of Ballarat for a larger central tree.<\/p>\n
Mr Smith\u2019s tree can be found at 5 Warrina Drive, Delacombe, while Ms Crawford\u2019s is at 5 Milverton Lane, Canadian, with the former\u2019s decorations to be taken down in early January and the latter\u2019s to remain all year round.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
DELACOMBE man Jeff Smith had been adorning his front yard with Christmas decorations for about two decades, when last year he did something different. With the passing of one friend\u2019s fiance, and another\u2019s teenage daughter leading into the holiday season, Mr Smith utilised his large bottlebrush as a memorial tree, placing baubles on the limbs […]<\/p>\n