BOSTON (WHDH) - The Tree for Boston, a deeply rooted Nova Scotia tradition in which the Canadian city donates Boston’s Christmas tree, comes from the aptly named community of Christmas Island this year.
Landowner Roddy Townsend and his children Angela, Carmen and Andrew have donated a 45-foot white spruce for the 2022 Christmas season, 105 years after the Halifax Explosion.
The 1917 explosion devastated the North End neighborhood in Halifax, killed nearly 2,000 people and left thousands more injured and homeless. The first Tree for Boston was donated by Joseph Slauenwhite as a thank-you to Boston for sending medical personnel and supplies to the province within hours of the explosion.
“The holidays are a time of reflection and gratitude,” said Minister of Natural Resources and Renewables Tory Rushton. “The Tree for Boston continues to be a sign of our deep appreciation for the aid Boston provided after the Halifax Explosion.”
Anyone able to attend is invited to the tree-cutting ceremony on Wednesday, Nov. 16, on the Townsend family’s property at 8008 Grand Narrows Highway, Christmas Island, Cape Breton. Carmen Townsend, an award-winning musician, will perform a song she has written about the Tree for Boston, and a local Mi’Kmaq elder will conduct a smudging ceremony before the tree is cut.
For those eagerly awaiting the tree in Boston, the white spruce will then leave Halifax on Nov. 21 for a tree lighting ceremony on Dec. 1 at 7 p.m. on Boston Common.
“We are grateful to Boston and beyond excited to be a part of such a wonderful tradition. We feel this is going to bring a lot of happiness to the surrounding communities,” the Townsend family said. “The tree is such a special gesture of gratitude, hope and continuing friendship.”
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