Fairhaven Family Donates New Bedford's Official Christmas Tree

Cristina Lopes had a problem. An evergreen tree on the Lopes property was beautiful, but it had grown too big for the family's yard on Brittany Street on Sconticut Neck in Fairhaven.

"There were electrical wires going through it," Lopes said. "It was right outside of our bedroom and our kids bedroom." They loved the tree, but in the interest of safety, they called a few tree companies to take it down.

They couldn't believe how much the quotes were to remove the tree. The going rate was $4,000, money they didn't have heading into the holidays.

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Then, Cristina Lopes saw a post that the City of New Bedford had put on social media looking for the perfect Christmas tree to go in front of the downtown library. The Lopes family tree was selected, and this morning the tree was cut down by city workers. The tree was stumped, it was ground down, and the tree and all of the remaining debris were taken away.

Not everyone was a fan of the Lopes family tree being selected, however. Their 10-year-old daughter Alana was heartbroken to see the tree come down, but the Lopes family promised to plant two more trees to replace it, just further away from their home.

The Lopes family kept a pine cone and a branch to remember their special tree, and New Bedford City Hall will be carving out a piece from the tree to create a plaque as a thank you to the family.

Alana admits that it's pretty cool her tree is "famous" now.