The Lemoore Volunteer Fire Department and the annual Christmas Tree tradition

Most local observers and part-time historians will say that over the years, the many volunteers that have graced its nearly 100-year history, have done an admirable job at saving lives and putting out a few fires.

No arguments on that front.

It took about an hour and a half to get the city's new Christmas tree in place Sunday afternoon in Lemoore.

But that isn’t all the volunteers do. In addition to occasionally putting out a fire or two, every Christmas, a bunch of the local volunteers, with axes in hand and chain saws ready to pounce, make a trek into the nearby Sierras for the perfect Christmas tree.

And they’re never disappointed, and neither are Lemoore’s residents.

 No “Charlie Brown” Christmas for this bunch. Only the best, and in this case, the best is a 73-foot tree, cut fresh from the forests of the High Sierra and then gingerly hauled back to Lemoore for a Sunday afternoon show during which they “raise the tree.”

As daredevil electrician Kyle Reed transports himself to the tree’s upper reaches via the fire department’s bucket truck, other volunteers busy themselves untangling the light cords and trimming the tree. Within an hour about 100 or so Lemoore onlookers are gazing upon a majestic tree standing upright in the middle of their town, courtesy of a bunch of volunteer firefighters.

It must be Christmas.

Dark morning clouds and scattered showers threatened to put a damper on the event, but by noon, when the volunteers began raising the tree, the rain was gone and the faithful came out for the show. “The weather wasn’t very cooperative this morning, but I’m glad to see so many people down here,” said Lemoore Fire Chief John Gibson.

Gibson said that this year 30 volunteers made the weekend journey, leaving Friday morning and returning on Sunday to raise the tree. “I’m told there were still 20 firemen left in town,” he mused.

Gibson also said that the tree, after they counted the rings, was determined it to be 52 years old.

While the fire department began in 1921, it wasn’t until 1923 that the men of the fire department decided it was their duty to provide the community with a downtown Christmas tree, and except for two years during World War II, a Christmas tree has continued to grace downtown Lemoore.

Gibson, the latest in a long line of fire chiefs, said the people of Lemoore love the annual tradition. “It means a lot to them,” he said, “especially to the fire department because it’s been such a tradition for so long, and I think there’s a lot of people in town who love that this happens every year.”

He also said it’s not hard to find volunteers to journey to the mountains. “It’s never a problem getting volunteers to go,” said Gibson. “The guys always look forward to it. Like I say, it’s such a tradition. The entire fire department is about tradition, and about serving the people of Lemoore.”

Initially the tree was placed more in the center of D Street, more in line with where Wells Fargo Bank currently does business, but many years was moved to its present location, at the intersection of D and Fox streets.

The tree normally comes down a shortly after New Year’s Day.