Dover Downs Hotel & Casino will be in full holiday regalia by the weekend, and the Delaware Hospice is doing its part to make the venue even more festive than usual.

    Come Thursday, Nov. 20, 50 Christmas trees and wreaths will fill the hotel lobby for the Delaware Hospice’s annual Festival of Trees fundraiser, which will run through the weekend.

    Trees and wreaths are still being perfected, so Peggy Dolby, assistant director of development for Delaware Hospice, does not yet know what types of décor visitors will see, but she has some ideas.

    “I look for more Victorian theme, being in the hotel,” she said.

    That doesn’t mean guests won’t see less common Christmas themes, though, such as the gun lovers’ tree, for the woman who prefers ammo over red ribbon.

    “We have a variation of everything, everybody has their own taste,” she said.

    Decorating Chair Connie Raymond has the inside scoop on some of the volunteers, such as ones going all out with an airplane theme, one that is doing an elegant gold and silver motif and another doing a tree entirely in sweets.

    “We have a little four-foot tree done all in … glass candy ornaments, which should be just adorable,” she said.

    Raymond got involved nearly 20 years ago when the event started.

    Since then she has decorated or been involved every year, and has been chair for the past five.

    She said many of the volunteer decorators come back year after year.

    “They’re making someone who’s having a difficult time, they’re making their Christmas a little brighter,” she said.

    Sometimes trees are given to people who have lost loved ones during the year and there just wasn’t the spirit or energy to decorate a tree this year, Raymond said.

    Some trees go to residences, some go to offices and some go to assisted living facilities.

    Last year’s Kent County event raised approximately $30,000 for the hospice’s general fund, according to Dolby. People can bid on trees during Thursday night’s silent auction or buy trees and wreaths outright at the event. Sometimes companies or groups even buy the trees, then turn around and hand them right back to the hospice, essentially making a donation and allowing the group to re-sell the tree so they can make double the profit.

    The only day of the event that has an admission fee is the Night of Lights cocktail reception, which will be from 6 to 9 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 20.

    The semi-formal evening allows guests to be the first to see the trees and wreaths, and bid on silent auction items.

    Admission is $30. Tickets can be purchased at the door, but reservations are appreciated so organizers can get a head count.

    Admission during the weekend is free this year, a new twist to years past.

    The venue is new, also.

    This year the festival moved from the Delaware Agricultural Museum and is looking forward to increased foot traffic, according to Dolby.

    “It’s kind of spicing it up,” she said. “And more people will be in the hotel, the more people will see your decorated tree.”

    This year will not feature the family fun night it has in the past, but photos with Santa will be available from noon to 4 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 22.

    Anything that creates that “warm feeling” is nice around the holidays, according to George Fiorile, vice president and general manager of hotel operations. And the fact that Delaware Hospice is a wonderful cause is obviously a draw, too.

    “We’ll really have a terrific, festive spirit,” he said.

Email Sarika Jagtiani at sarika.jagtiani@doverpost.com

If you go...
What: Delaware Hospice’s Festival of Trees, including the Night of Lights cocktail reception
When: Night of Lights is from 6 to 9 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 20; the Festival of Trees is open from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday, Nov. 21 and 22, and from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 22
Where: Dover Downs Hotel & Casino, hotel lobby
Admission: Free during the weekend; Night of Lights is $30
Information: Call 678-4448, ext. 122