It’s all about giving

Back for another beautiful year is the Jasper County 4-H Festival of Trees. Housed at the Jasper County Courthouse, trees surround the centerpiece two-story tree in the rotunda on both the first and second floor.

“Clubs pick a charity or non-profit to support then pick items to either put on the tree to decorate with,” Iowa State University Extension and Outreach County Youth Coordinator Stacey Wilson said.

Overnight at the start of Thanksgiving week trees popped up in the courthouse decorated with a variety of ornaments, both traditional and out-of-the-box. 4-H kids from across the county gathered to make their club’s own unique tree.

“It is a really fun night,” Wilson said. “No matter what kind of day you are having, you see all of the kids, some who haven’t seen each other since the fair, it is exciting and warms your heart.”

Many organizations benefit from the tree’s themes including Quilts of Valor, the PCM Food Pantry, local animal organizations and a variety of nonprofits throughout the county. The festival not only brings eye candy to the courthouse, it also works to help those in need where they live.

“When we had the Animal Rescue League they would use dog or cat toys,” Wilson said. “They are all so unique. There is one club that makes their tree out of packages of toilet paper that they then donate to the PCM Food Pantry. Then, they wrap garland around it.”

First hosted by the Jasper County Fair Board in Colfax at the fairgrounds, the festival coincided with the Colfax Country Christmas event. As the years progressed, the 4-H clubs took over the organizing and in 2006 it moved to the county seat.

“It is a good fit, the building is so pretty,” Wilson said. “We do get a lot of compliments and positive comments on the festival. We like to bring to light that 4-H is not just for farm and rural kids. There is community service involved, life skills involved, record keeping and all kinds of communication skills. This brings let the public see all of the citizenship that 4-H clubs and kids do.”

And for almost two decades it has made the courthouse home for the holiday season. While the trees will be up until after Christmas, those wanting to see all of the decorations will need to stop by before the 25th. As the holiday approaches, some of the items used to decorate the trees will make their way to the people and organizations the trees are based around to celebrate the giving theme.