Christmas tree shortage not out of the woods

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This article was published 22/12/2021 (1055 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A decades-long Christmas tradition returned to River Heights this holiday season, and it was met with more demand than ever before.

The 67th Winnipeg Scout Group is holding its annual Christmas tree sale at the Corydon Community Centre’s River Heights site (1370 Grosvenor Ave.) until Dec. 22.

Surrounded by dozens of balsam firs, white pines, spruce trees and handmade wreaths, group commissioner Doug Strang said they sold more trees earlier in the season than previous years.

“We sold probably close to half of our season’s stock in one day, and from then we had to close to get more in,” he told The Sou’wester.

“There was this really big early rush to get trees, but now that we’ve got more stock in, we have plenty and things have slowed down a lot.”

Last year, the group had to adapt to newly introduced public health orders and restrictions. There were fewer lots and businesses selling trees due to COVID-19, including retail giant IKEA.

Customers weren’t allowed to physically come into the lot, so they set up an online order system, made deliveries and had curbside pickup.

“People were just scrambling to get trees this year and last year,” Strang said. “We ran out of trees; other lots ran out of trees. People were caught a bit off guard and couldn’t get a tree or the tree they wanted. This year people were much more aware and decided to buy fairly early.”

The Christmas tree lot is the main fundraiser for the 67th Winnipeg Scout Group, which primarily serves southwest Winnipeg communities, including River Heights, Crescentwood and Linden Woods.

Currently, about 55 youth are registered in programming. Money raised during the holiday season tree sale goes toward the cost of camping equipment, supplies and activities.

“We can also use the money for registration fees people have to pay, and over the last number of years we’ve been able to send youth to jamborees anywhere in western or eastern Canada,” Strang said.

At press time, the group had sold over 2,000 trees, with the bulk of sales occurring in November.

Strang said they’ll have enough trees to sustain them until the end of the holiday season.

More information on the 67th Winnipeg Scout Group can be found at www.sites.google.com/site/6667wpg