Zanesville-Muskingum Chamber of Commerce prepares for 34th Annual Festival of Trees
ZANESVILLE, Ohio – The Zanesville-Muskingum County Chamber of Commerce is gearing up for their 34th annual Festival of Trees and it’s only a month away.
Nearly 200 trees, wreaths, stockings, and other holiday themed items will fill the Welcome Center in Zanesville to be auctioned off on Dec. 4. You can contribute an item to this year’s auction by visiting their website and as Chamber President Dana Matz explains, participants often contribute more than a holiday decoration.
“Most of the entries have an incentive with them. So some people may go to a local florist and have them create a holiday wreath and then maybe their business, if it’s a restaurant, they’ll give gift cards,” Matz said. “Other folks are very creative and they really take a lot of time. Some people tell us they start in June making their entries. So last year, one of their things was a Lego tree. So, it was created by a local business person who created a, I would say a 6-foot-tall Lego tree that they made on a printer.”
There will be an auction preview day on Dec. 2 and the auction will be live AM1240 where you can bid in-person and over the phone. The auction schedule will be available online the week before the event and Matz says it’s a big event for local businesses.
“Segments are 15 minutes so we call it the local business’ 15 minutes of fame. So it’s an opportunity for a business, you know, we get to talk about the business and their entry. And then, other businesses are bidding on it,” Matz said. “We all know that we live in a very caring and generous community and it just never surprises us how well they, the business people, how they take care of chamber, how they take care of the community and it’s a sense of pride. So, we’re very happy to be part of it.”
You can visit the Zanesville-Muskingum County Chamber of Commerce’s website to register or learn more about the Festival of Trees. Proceeds from the auction fund the operations of the chamber and help keep membership and event costs down.
Entry Drop-off
- Tuesday, Nov. 24: 9 a.m. – 4 p.m.
- Wednesday, Nov. 25: 9 a.m. – 12 p.m.
- Monday Nov. 30: 9 a.m. – 4 p.m.
Auction Preview
- Wednesday, Dec. 2: 9 a.m. – 5 p.m.
Auction Day
- Friday, Dec. 4: 9 a.m. – 6 p.m.
