"Christmas Tree on the Hill" Founder is Honoured

Many people hold traditions dear to their hearts at this time of year, but how do we define “tradition”. Usually it celebrates the occurrence or re occurrence of an event such as a holiday or maybe a family event that is celebrated annually and passed down through generations.

Schreiber has a few unique traditions and recently the founder of one of them was recognized for his role in creating the events leading up to it becoming an official traditional event. The annual Christmas tree on the hill can be observed from most points in town, but up until now not many knew of it’s origin.

This year when the lights on the hill were officially turned on, one citizen in particular thought that it was rather odd that the names of the people responsible for starting this event so many decades ago were never mentioned. She has a close connection to one of the founding members as it is her very own father, Mister Gerry Thrower.

This year the township of Schreiber decided to honour the only surviving person responsible for the original Christmas tree on the hill tradition. Gerry Thrower is well over 80 years old and was quite surprised by the news that he would be receiving a plaque from the mayor to honour his contribution to the now annual event.

In the early 80’s Gerry decided on night that he wanted to light up a tree on the hill behind his house to celebrate Christmas. In those days, permits and permission were rarely considered so he set off with a string of lights and a small gasoline powered generator and found the most suitable tree on the hill. The biggest problem with the idea was the limitation of the amount of fuel that could be used at any moment, so he would often make several trips up the hill just to refill the tank that fed the generator. This all happened in the dead of winter when temperatures can often reach -30 degrees Celsius.

Gerry wasn’t alone in his quest as the years passed. Many people often tagged along or helped out and the “tree” was now becoming very popular with the locals. One man in particular is also known as "the father of the Christmas tree". Orelle Major was one of Gerry’s good friends and when it came time to light up the tree for another season, the two men would take a snow machine up the hill armed with lights and gasoline for the generator. On one particular occasion, they were quite surprised to find that the tree had been cut down, possibly on purpose so a new plan was hatched. A metal replacement frame was constructed using a team of metal workers from the nearby pulp mill. Around the same time, the generators were put to rest as Hydro had ran a power line up the hill that could now be used to power the lights.

The new structure was nearly 20 feet high and over the years it has literally grown larger as more lights have been donated to the project. It stands proudly overlooking the town from its hilltop perch and has become a symbol of hope and friendship in the town of Schreiber.