Christmas Wishes from The Rocks Estate

As the countdown to Christmas continues, The Rocks Estate would like to wish you all a very happy holiday season! We are thankful, as always, to have seen so many of you – whether new customers or old friends – during this season of busy activity and merriment at The Rocks, or to have sent some holiday cheer to you through our online shop.

For the last-minute shoppers reading this, remember The Rocks is open right through Christmas Eve! Our shops, brimming with holiday gifts and décor, will remain open daily from 10 a.m.-4 p.m. And if you still need a Christmas tree or wreath, we’ve got you covered! Come select one from the field to cut, or choose one from our retail lot to bring home and trim.

Whether your family has been coming to The Rocks for years or you made your first visit this season, we hope you enjoyed the fullness of the holiday spirit at the farm! And we hope to see you again next year.

Merry Christmas to all!

The Rocks teams up with Adaptive Sports Partners

ASPNC crew at Cannon Mountain

It takes a lot of elves to spread Christmas cheer, and this year at The Rocks Estate we’re getting some holiday help from Adaptive Sports Partners of the North Country. ASPNC has been a fixture in our area since 2009, providing a variety of athletic and wellness activities for people with disabilities. Their friendly volunteers are on hand during busy holiday weekends at The Rocks, offering up seasonal merriment – and delicious treats, too!

Christmas tree hunting can inspire a big appetite, so the good folks from Adaptive Sports Partners are serving clam chowder, chili, hot dogs, veggie snacks, Clementine oranges, baked potatoes, and a delightful array of home-baked sweets, along with water, hot coffee and tea, and cocoa.

The proceeds from concession sales will go directly to offsetting the costs of the many exciting programs ASPNC offers to area residents through the year, from Nordic and alpine skiing to this year’s new adventure – sled hockey – in the winter, to gardening, mountain biking, hiking, and fishing in the warmer months, and year-round activities like swimming and power soccer.

With a mission of ensuring “the enrichment of the quality of life for people with disabilities through year-round opportunities for sport, recreation, and wellness,” and a goal of enhancing the personal development and self-esteem of participants, ASPNC makes sure participants are never excluded because of an inability to pay for programs. Fundraising is key to providing these programs and ensuring all who want to may participate.

So, bring your appetite when you visit The Rocks this season, and say hello to the elves from ASPNC. The food is delicious – and the holiday cheer comes at no extra cos!

At The Rocks ~ Trees for Troops by the numbers

The Christmas tree has long been an integral symbol of the season. Somehow, it just doesn’t feel like Christmas until there’s a fragrant fir tree standing inside the house, adorned with lights and colors, a centerpiece of the holiday decorations.

Fifth graders and combat vets help load trees.

(Read about the history of the Christmas tree in our Blog post on Christmas tree trivia.)

For more than a decade, the Christmas SPIRIT Foundation, a charitable arm of the National Christmas Tree Association, has been delivering Christmas trees and the joy they impart to members of the United States military and their families – serving both at home and abroad.

This week, as has become tradition, students from Bethlehem Elementary School came to The Rocks Estate to help load Christmas trees that will be delivered across the country and perhaps beyond. Each tree holds a note, written by the students, of thanks and good cheer.

Here, Trees for Troops by the numbers:

2005

Year the Christmas SPIRIT Foundation and FedEx

first teamed up to deliver Christmas trees

to U.S. service members and their families

______________________________________

11

Number of years The Rocks

has participated in the

Trees for Troops program

_____________________________________

157,263

Christmas trees delivered by

Trees for Troops from the program’s

inception through 2014

___________________________________

450

Christmas trees donated through

New Hampshire and

Vermont tree farms this year

__________________________________

25

Happy 5^th graders helping to

load those 450 trees into the

 FedEx truck at The Rocks December 1^st

____________________________________

573,493

FedEx miles traveled (all donated)

to deliver Trees for Troops

Christmas trees through 2014

_____________________________________

21,000

Farm-grown Christmas trees expected to

be donated this year by

400 tree farms in 25 states

If you’d like to help The Rocks and Trees for Troops spread holiday cheer, one tree at a time, visit the Christmas SPIRIT Foundation website, where you may learn about the history of the program, as well as make a donation to Trees for Troops. 

To see a video clip of this week's loading of the trees, check out WMUR-TV's coverage.