FedEx and Trees for Troops Deliver Holiday Joy Across the Globe

While many people gather with their loved ones to celebrate the holidays, some, like those serving in the military, spend the holidays oceans apart.

But with the help of the Christmas SPIRIT Foundation and FedEx, Trees for Troops delivers a bit of holiday cheer to our Armed Forces and their families in the form of free live Christmas trees. More than 17,000 military families will celebrate the holidays this year with trees from the program.

For the Schaefer family, the trees are bringing them together even though they will be more than 7,500 miles apart for Christmas. Mark Schaefer, part of the 3^rd Calvary Regiment, will be spending the holiday stationed in Afghanistan. His wife, Amy, and children, Matthew and Anna, anxiously await his return in Fort Hood, Texas. Both Mark and his family received trees from the Trees for Troops program.

“Mark was so excited to receive his tree – a real piece of the USA in Afghanistan,” shared Amy. “The tree really lifted his spirits. It means so much to the troops to know that people at home are thinking about them during the holidays.”

Amy, Matthew and Anna picked out their tree at the Fort Hood delivery on Dec. 11. Mark, sitting near his tree in Afghanistan, chatted with his family via video chat and watched as they decorated the tree at home.

“It was an amazing day for us,” said Amy. “From Afghanistan to Texas, this is a Christmas that we will never forget.”