Kirkwood Tree is Giving Tree

A Christmas tree dotted with colorful, fuzzy hats and mittens is stopping traffic on Taylor Avenue in Kirkwood.

Homeowner Cathy Horneyer of 425 N. Taylor Ave. placed the evergreen in her front yard to collect the mittens for charity. In two weeks, the Kirkwood Mitten Tree Project has received about 100 items, according to Horneyer.

"People have really just stepped up," she said. 

Horneyer conceived the idea a couple of weeks before Christmas, knowing that her house on busy Taylor Avenue just north of the would be an ideal spot to attract attention.

She approached Dan Mitchell of Summit Farms Produce at the ; he donated a leftover Christmas tree as well as $50 to purchase mittens. Several other businesses have also contributed to the project.

The mitten tree was staked in Horneyer's yard on Christmas Eve. Mittens, gloves, hats and scarves started showing up on its branches right away.

"I knew I had great visibility," said Horneyer, 55, who owns a public relations and marketing company. "There's a constant parade of people who walk by my house.  Somebody is always standing there looking at the tree and they say, 'I'll be back to drop something off.'"

Storms on New Years Eve gave her a scare, though.

"I heard 70 mile per hour winds were coming," she said. "I raced out there and I was frantically unpinning all the Ziploc bags (on the tree) into a shopping bag that I grabbed from the counter that still had food in it. I thought, 'Holy cow!' I was afraid the tree wouldn't be standing when I went out."

But the tree survived and Horneyer thinks she will make the project a yearly effort. This year, the donated mittens will go to the 100 Neediest Cases.

The mitten tree will stay up until Jan. 10. Donated mittens can be placed in a plastic bag and attached to the tree with the clothespins Horneyer provided.