Tree Donation for Dayton’s Holiday Festival
Crime scene in township neighborhood?
The Bradley Estates neighborhood, located in Monroe Township, was awakened Friday morning, November 15th, at 8:30 a.m. to the buzz of several Dayton Police Cruisers, a City of Dayton Public Works truck, a crane and flatbed from PSC Crane and Rigging, and several news crews.
“What was happening?” the neighbors inquired. A crime scene? Or service of a search warrant? It was something happier. The homeowners, Greg and Rose Kiener donated their beautiful Blue Spruce tree to serve as downtown Dayton’s Holiday Festival tree.
This morning, the tree was cut and taken to Dayton’s Courthouse Square, 23 N Main St., Dayton. There were 20 applicants considered for this year's tree, and the Kiener tree was selected.
With the tree as large as it is, several Dayton Police cruisers with the traffic unit were on hand to escort the tree back to Court House Square. Sgt. Gordon Cairns was leading the escort detail.
Due to the circumference of the trees, Sgt. Cairns said they would need two patrol cars in front and following the motorcade, with two more for support. PSC Crane and Rigging from Piqua provided the crane and flatbed for the city to remove and place the tree on Courthouse Square.
This coordinated effort involved harvesting the tree from the front yard of 5690 Jeffrey Lane Tipp City and immediately transporting it to Courthouse Square.
Free festivities are planned for the Dayton Holiday Festival kick-off on Friday, November 29, including the Grande Illumination tree-lighting ceremony presented by AES Ohio, live
musical entertainment on the main stage sponsored by Sinclair Community College, free carnival rides at the Street Fair on Third, crafts, performers. More kids’ activities in the Candy Cane Clubhouse at Stratacache Tower, the Junior League of Dayton’s Holiday Adventure sponsored by Wright-Patt Credit Union, horse-drawn wagon rides, and the Gingerbread Homes for the Holidays gingerbread house contest in the Old Courthouse.
The Grande Illumination tree-lighting ceremony begins at 7:00 p.m. on Courthouse Square, followed immediately by the Dayton Children’s Parade Spectacular in Lights, presented by White-Allen Chevrolet and sponsored by CareSource with LED parade lights sponsored by NECA/IBEW Electrical Professionals. The parade will feature a variety of seasonal floats, horses, and local entertainers illuminated by more than 100,000 LED lights to officially welcome the holiday season to downtown Dayton.
“The Dayton Holiday Festival has been a cherished tradition of our downtown Dayton community for more than 50 years, always keeping Mrs. Virginia Kettering’s mission and legacy at its forefront,” said Katie Meyer, President of the Downtown Dayton Partnership. “This celebration brings everyone in our community together to create lasting memories, regardless of economic means or other factors. Helping make this tradition happen is a joy every year for myself, our staff, our sponsors, and our community partners.”
More information about the Grande Illumination, Dayton Children’s Parade Spectacular in Lights, and the month-long Dayton Holiday Festival, presented by AES Ohio, will soon be available at daytonholidayfestival.org. The Downtown Dayton Partnership and AES Ohio present the Dayton Holiday Festival.