Tree goes from 18-inch sapling to center of Aurora's attention

In the spirit of giving, often associated with this time of year, Aurora resident Joan Crawford wanted to share a gift with the entire city: her tree.

City workers Monday morning harvested the 38-foot-tall, 4,000 pound fir tree from her front yard, one of three she and her husband William planted 46 years ago when they built their home at 675 Konen.

Crawford's tree will be the one lit by Mayor Tom Wiesner during the city's Nov. 27 Holiday Magic event at North Island Center.

"It was so pretty, such a well-shaped tree, I just wanted to share it with everyone," she said. "That's what Christmas is all about so I'm just really glad to able to do it."

The tree was a mere 18-inches tall when the Crawfords planted them in front of their new home, but she said they took off quickly.

"We went from saying, 'We really need to do something' about the front yard before we planted them," she said. "And as time went on and they kept growing, we found ourselves saying 'We really need to do something' about the trees."

City workers, she said, have known exactly what the Crawfords could do with one of the trees for about five years.

Street Department Supervisor Bill Pauley "asked if I was still interested in donating the tree so I guess it was finally big enough after five years of having their eyes on it," Crawford said. "So I told them to take whichever one they wanted."

Through the years, Crawford said she's gotten much pleasure from watching birds nest in the tree and rabbits under it, but she never thought she would get emotional about donating the tree until the chain-saw started.

"I didn't expect it to be such an emotional moment but I've been thinking about the great times we had with that tree all morning," she said. "I even stood outside and watched it drive down the street until it disappeared."

Getting the massive tree to North Island Center was no small feat, either, as crews blocked off the route from Crawfords' home to the tree's final destination where it will be decorated and illuminated on Nov. 27.

"I'll definitely be there to see them light it because that's just one more fond memory to have," she said. "I can't wait to see what they do with it."

Crawford said it has been many years since the three evergreens out front have been decorated.

"They were only small enough to decorate for a short time," she said. "I don't have a cherry-picker parked out back."