In search of the perfect evergreen for Tree of Light

Hospital employee donates tree year after year

John Huber at Greenwich Hospital’s Carl and Dorothy Bennett Community Garden, home to the numerous evergreens that have served as Tree of Light centerpieces throughout the years.

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Greenwich, Conn. (Nov. 22, 2019) – For John Huber, the quest to find the perfect evergreen is particularly poignant.

For the past eight years, Huber has donated an evergreen to Greenwich Hospital that serves double duty. The tree is the centerpiece of the hospital’s annual Tree of Light, a nondenominational ceremony that will take place on Monday, Dec. 2. Come January, Huber will find a permanent home for the evergreen in the hospital’s Carl and Dorothy Bennett Community Garden.

“Our goal is to create a sustainable garden. It seems only fitting to plant the Tree of Light evergreen in the garden to live on for years to come,” said Huber, an environmental engineer and landscape designer who tends to the three-acre garden. “Some evergreens are as tall as 15 feet now.”

Huber takes pride in the organic garden, which has become a place of solace for patients, visitors, volunteers and employees at Greenwich Hospital throughout the years. The garden, which includes many plants that are native to the area, is open to the public.

“People come up to me to ask about the plantings and comment on the humming birds, butterflies and other wildlife they see,” he said. “It’s very gratifying.”

As for this year’s Tree of Light evergreen, Huber hopes to find a blue spruce or Northeast spruce that is tall and full. “Being part of the Tree of Light event is special,” he said.

The Tree of Light will take place on Monday, Dec. 2 at 5 pm at Greenwich Hospital’s Noble Conference Center followed by a tree-lighting ceremony on the Sanna and Victor Borge Terrace. All are welcome to this free nondenominational event. Donations to the Tree of Light will be directed to Greenwich Hospital’s Palliative Care program to support and comfort seriously ill patients and their families.

Greenwich Hospital is a member of Yale New Haven Health. Greenwich is a 206-bed (includes 32 isolettes) community hospital serving lower Fairfield County, Connecticut and Westchester County, New York. It is a academic affiliate of Yale School of Medicine. Since opening in 1903, Greenwich Hospital has evolved into a progressive medical center and teaching institution representing all medical specialties and offering a wide range of medical, surgical, diagnostic and wellness programs. Greenwich Hospital is recognized throughout the healthcare industry as a leader in service and patient satisfaction excellence. Greenwich Hospital has the prestigious Magnet designation from the American Nurses Credentialing Center, the nation’s highest honor of nursing excellence. www.greenwichhospital.org