Delivering the Holidays, FedEx Style

It’s that time of year when FedEx delivers holiday joy around the world. One of our most meaningful traditions matches the FedEx global network with the Christmas SPIRIT Foundation – delivering live Christmas trees to military bases overseas and throughout the U.S.

This year marks the ninth annual “Trees for Troops” program delivered by FedEx. Today, FedEx volunteers in Thorntown, Ind., are officially kicking off this year’s initiative as they prepare hundreds of fresh trees destined to military members stationed in the Middle East. For military personnel serving abroad, the trees will provide a living connection to their holiday traditions at home.

Once the international shipment goes out, FedEx Freight team members will hit the pavement with more than 17,000 freshly cut trees that will be delivered to more than 60 U.S. military bases throughout the first two weeks of December. In many cases, these deliveries will be greeted with holiday festivities for troops and their families at the bases.

This is my sixth year working with the Trees for Troops program. As an Army veteran, I am glad FedEx supports these very deserving men, women and families, “ said Stan Bradford, freight flow analyst, FedEx Freight. Bradford coordinates the logistics of the tree pickups and deliveries. “These people do so much for our country and anything we can do to put a little holiday cheer in their lives makes us feel like we’re contributing to something bigger.”

Since 2005, FedEx has shipped more than 122,000 real Christmas trees to service members and their families at more than 60 bases in 17 countries. If that’s not the definition of “spreading holiday cheer,” then I don’t know what is!

You can also support Trees for Troops by donating to the program or purchasing fresh trees at one of the more than 30 Christmas tree retail locations during the official Trees for Troops Weekend, Dec. 6-8. Find out more information at http://www.treesfortroops.org/