Festival of Trees brought in a pile of cash

More raffle tickets sold at this year's Festival of Trees; all proceeds go to local Lung Association programs

The Lung Association's annual Festival of Trees at the Machine Shop. Donna Hopper/SooToday

Numbers have yet to be finalized, but Festival of Trees organizers estimate close to $100,000 was raised at this year’s event, a Lung Association fundraiser, held at The Machine Shop from Thursday to Sunday.

This year’s festival had 80 entries of decorated trees, wreaths and items donated by local businesses and a variety of professional sports organizations, compared to 83 last year.

4,000 more raffle tickets were sold this year as compared to last, said Grace Briglio, the Lung Association’s Sault office manager, community engagement.

Funds raised through the Festival of Trees goes to the local Lung Association office and its programs.

Last year, part of the money raised went to a tobacco free awareness program for Grade 4 students at schools in the Sault and Algoma region.