It's fun having you as my SPECIAL, SPECIAL FRIEND. But you know, SPECIAL, SPECIAL FRIENDS should always know everything about each other.

I'll start and tell you about me and my family first, then later you can tell me about yourself. O.K.?

Come with me SPECIAL, SPECIAL FRIENDS on a journey through time and meet my Christmas Tree family who date back almost 500 years according to earliest historical records, to the year 1510. In the Baltic villages of Rega and Reval, Latvia, local merchants wanted to become a part of villagers family Christmas celebrations, so they selected the most beautiful tree from a nearby forest, cut and placed it in the town square and invited all the Villages people to put colorful decorations on the tree. People also brought food and there was dancing, singing, celebration and merriment.

The custom and joy of having a Tree being a part of Christmas spread through Europe. All of Germany made it a part of their tradition and Martin Luther was the first to have a tree as part of the Decorations in a Church during the Christmas season. Soon the people began referring to it as the CHRISTMAS TREE.

In Northern Italy the men went up to the mountains in donkey-drawn carts and brought back Christmas Trees for their houses and Church. Big trees were placed in the Church near the altar and the Choir sang Christmas songs for the First time in a Church.

In early Spain, there were not enough trees or forests, so my Christmas Tree relatives were divided into branches, which were then decorated on Christmas Eve.

Although Christmas had been celebrated for several centuries in the British Isles it was not until 1848, at a great Christmas ball at Windsor Castle,, that Prince Albert, formerly of Germany, presented his wife Queen Victoria, with a gift, the Queen's and England's first Christmas Tree.  Their children who had been told before of the surprise and the Dutch wooden shoe tradition, did not have any wooden shoes, so instead they hung stockings by the fireplace. These two new Christmas traditions then spread all over England.

The first Christmas Tree in America can be traced to the German Moravian Church's Communal settlement in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania on Christmas day in 1747 from New York, who were mostly from Holland, in singing songs from their old countries, as they huddled around fires trying to be warm.  When the New England colony's soldiers returned to their homes, after the Revolutionary War was won, they told their family and friends about the Christmas Tree and Christmas celebration at Valley Forge. Soon the Christmas Tree tradition spread through out all the 13 colonies and adjoining territories.

As America acquired more territories, the joy and pleasure of Christmas Trees moved west with the settlers. In 1804, Captain Whistler and his soldiers at Fort Dearborn (now Chicago) cut trees out of nearby forests and gave some to the pioneers in the wagon train camped outside the fort.  Tree branches were used to decorate the fort's gate, barracks and officers quarters.

In 1825, Philadelphia's Saturday Evening Post printed a story on Christmas Trees seen by the reporter who described them as, "Having very green boughs, splendidly decorated with strings of popcorn, strings of cranberries, gilded nuts, fruits, small American flags, candy canes and lighted candles."

Have you and your family ever made strings of popc6rn to decorate your tree and house? It's lots of fun SPECIAL, SPECIAL FRIEND.

Families used to be able to go to nearby forests for their Christmas Trees. As cities grew the forests got smaller, and people had to travel long distances to get their Christmas Tree.

A Pennsylvania farmer named Mark Carr saw that some people did not want to go long distances, so he hauled two ox sleds loaded with trees from his farm, to New York City in 1851 and opened the first recorded Christmas Tree retail lot in America.

In 1882, the first Christmas Trees to have electric lights took place in New York City. Thomas Edison, the inventor of the light bulb and the Mayor jointly flipped the switch, lighting the rows of Christmas Trees that lined both sides of Broadway. News stories described it "As the most beautiful event ever seen in New York City, or any other city."

The use of electric Lights soon replaced lighted candle use in Christmas Tree decorations, as cities, then later small towns acquired electricity and lights became available. Towns and cities across America and much of the world have adopted New York's custom of having large beautifully decorated Christmas Trees for their people to enjoy.

Television has made It a new tradition to show all the world some of these magnificently lighted trees, such as at Rockefeller Center in New York City, at the White House in Washington D.C., also in San Francisco's Union Square and London England's Trafalgar Square.

Franklin Pierce, the 14th President of the United States, was the first to have a Christmas Tree in the White House in 1856, which time caroler's sang "Hark, the Herald Angels Sing " for the first time.

The White House usually has two Christmas Trees Inside, one on the first floor and one upstairs in the First Family's living quarters.

In 1923, President Calvin Coolidge established the National Community Christmas Tree and The Tree Lighting Ceremony Tradition on the White House lawn. Each year one of my big relatives is chosen from.a different State, so each State has their turn for the honor of providing the National Tree. Part of the decorations is 50 special ornaments, one for each State. The tree is always so big and beautiful, it makes all Americans happy and proud. When the President turns on the lights it signals to everyone the Christmas Season has started.

As you SPECIAL, SPECIAL FRIENDS might say "That's some family tree CT". It sure makes me happy to tell you about my relatives and how for hundreds of years, they have helped people have fun and happiness. SPECIAL, SPECIAL FRIEND, ask your Mother and Father to explain and tell you about your "family tree .

Now that I've told you about my relatives, let me tell you about me. First SPECIAL, SPECIAL FRIEND, you should know that today we Christmas Trees hardly ever come from forests. Instead, we are raised on farms just like this one. As we grow we do good things just like our big forest tree cousins. We make the farm air smell good just like a forest.   The air is so clear you can see for miles and miles. It makes everybody and everything feel good and happy. Even the clouds seem to be smiling, because we Christmas Trees make oxygen, clean air and clean skies.

The Christmas Tree farmer is a very special farmer who loves his work growing happiness and good memories for you SPECIAL, SPECIAL FRIENDS, your family and family's across America. Everytime our tree farmer cuts and sends one of us CT IS to your city, he plants a new little CT to take our place, so year after year we continue making fresh air for the farm and the world. So cutting a real Christmas Tree does not hurt our world because we're replaced, we grow and best of all we keep giving happiness.

But, my SPECIAL,, SPECIAL FRIENDS, there are some trees that should not be cut down. The world's scientists, teachers and some political leaders are worried and tell us there's a big, big problem for every living thing. It's a problem for you, your Mom and Dad, brothers and sisters, friends, everybody, even your furry cats and dog friends. The problem is the World's forests are becoming smaller and smaller and too many big trees that help make medicines, paper, food, houses, furniture and influence climate are being cut down. These scientists often refer to these trees as being the lungs of the world as they not only create oxygen, or clean air, trees remove dirt, dust and air pollution to help repair air damage caused by autos, factories and coal burning electric generation plants.

NASA scientists also say that pictures from satellites show the holes in the earths ozone layer are getting bigger and we have to now be more careful the suns rays don't damage our skin. The scientists also say cutting and not replacing trees is causing global warming and it is hurting ecology.

Scientists also say too many trees In America's cities are also being cut down and in the cities only ONE NEW TREE IS PLANTED FOR EVERY FOUR TREES CUT DOWN. They say that in Los Angeles for example the average temperature is 5 degrees hotter than 40 years ago, before the Orange, Lemon, Walnut and Avocado orchards were destroyed to make room for houses and streets. Residents there spend an extra $2 billion yearly for air conditioning to compensate for the extra heat.

The same scientists point out that trees play an important role in attracting rain. They warn that with less and less trees In cities and forests not only will cities receive less rain, but also the farms and ranches which surround them will also receive less and less rain. Most of man and animals food crops such as wheat, barley, corn, grass and cattle grow on farms and ranches that need and depend on rain. So, SPECIAL, SPECIAL FRIENDS it's a very serious problem for farmers, ranchers, you and your family, everyone. America needs trees in its cities, it's forests, and on its farms and ranches.

I'm so excited, SPECIAL, SPECIAL FRIENDS, I've got an idea, a simple plan and way for your city, town and all of America to replace the lost big trees that were once here. But for the plan to work, each year it will need your help and that of your parents, teachers and other boys and girls all across the country. This is why it is so exciting, because people everywhere want clean air, clean water, clean skies, good weather so food can grow. They also want trees for their present and their children's future. Trees to make paper, build houses, schools, medicine, furniture and food.

What people want my young SPECIAL, SPECIAL FRIENDS, are the main basic parts of what people call good ecology. Most people don't think of CT and my relatives, of past or present, as helping ecology. Happily, most people think of Christmas Trees as being the center of fun, joy and a happy celebration and of being the most LOVED TREE IN THE WORLD.

This love and affection will make CT's plan work, because people will want to pay back ecology for the happiness and pleasure their Christmas Tree gives them, if given the opportunity.

Now, here's the simple details of CT's idea and plan. Each year when we CT's come to your city or town, we will bring baby trees, or seedlings, for you and each buyer of a real Christmas Tree to plant at your home, school,, or In your city or town's park. Then the world will get two trees for every Christmas Tree cut. A new baby CT on the farm and the other planted by you in your city or town.

Now Special Special Friend what are we going to call the seedling, or baby tree, you plant?

Everybody loves babies and babies are given names, so shouldn't your baby tree have a name? Let's think of a name, baby trees are cute and little now, later they will be big and tall.

Hey, I've got it, Baby Tree -Big Tree. How about using the initials like I did.

Let's name it BT.

Then if you will take little BT and plant him in your yard, or at your school, somewhere where little BT can have room to grow big just like our big forest relatives. You'll have lots of fun planting your BT. Every year when planting another BT you should measure your first BT and yourself to see how much each has grown.  Who do you think will grow the fastest, young SPECIAL, SPECIAL FRIENDS, you or your BT?