Though the 33rd annual Intermountain Festival of Trees will take on a bit of a different look to end 2020, the message will still be the same.
Intermountain is a non-profit organization that provides mental and behavioral health care to Montana's youth. In an average year, the Festival of Trees fundraiser will see approximately 10,000 people stroll through to bid on donated items to raise funds for their organization said Intermountain's Tyler Zimmer. However, amidst the COVID-19 pandemic things will be a bit different. Patrons who wish to take in the the sights of the Festival of Trees must have a ticket in one of the Festival's one-hour blocks of 20 people, with masks and adequate social distancing being required as well.
Zimmer said on average the Festival raises approximately $500,000 but this year, it will be tough to hit that mark because of the restrictions.
"A lot of the difference between this year and a typical year is really just the foot traffic. We'll still get most of our major donations, but we're not seeing obviously the people who stop at our Giving Tree or stop at our silent auction," said Zimmer.
Though people may not be able to take in the Festival of Trees, Intermountain has created an online platform that can be found here.
