Last year AnnMarie Rossi set up about a dozen Christmas trees in her Canastota home. She and her husband, Richard, lost their son, Bryan about a year-and-a-half ago in a tragic tractor-trailer accident while he was working. To keep her mind occupied during sleepless nights, AnnMarie kept busy with projects. During the holidays, decorating Christmas trees was just one of the many projects that kept her busy.
This year she outdid herself and has more than 20 Christmas trees displayed in the house. The trees come in all sizes; some are made of ceramic and one is made entirely of tree bark. She even has a tree set up in the bathroom.
“I’ve always loved Christmas,” AnnMarie said. When she was district manager for Avon, a position she held for 20 years, AnnMarie said she shopped for Christmas presents all year long.
“I also shopped for other managers,” she said. “We had a big Christmas party every year. I wrapped for myself. I wrapped for other people. I wanted to continue to do that.”
The Rossi’s held an event at their home just to give their friends and family the opportunity to walk through and view the trees. She created a program and entitled it “Celebration of Trees Wishing you Peace, Love & Joy.” The program guided guests through the home beginning with the front yard through the garden room and into the kitchen. Displayed in the dining room are three trees of different sizes. All the trees are named and decorated in a specific theme. The bathroom tree is called, “A Look Through Your Medicine Cabinet” and the ornaments hanging from the tree are items typically found in the medicine chest, like toothbrushes and pill bottles.
“You don’t have to spend a lot of money,” AnnMarie said. “Most of these items are hanging around the house.” Like the tree in the kitchen adorned with measuring spoons and spice bottles. She found a pair of old egg beaters at a garage sale.
The tour continued with a treasure trove of ornaments of teddy bears, children’s toys, gold and glitter, angels and butterflies in the master bedroom and “Memories of Avon,” a tree that was decorated entirely of Avon products.
The Rossi’s guests voted on their favorite tree and “Joy from the Sea” decorated entirely of seashells was the winner. Richard drilled a small hole in each shell so AnnMarie could hang them.
Hung from the large wildlife tree in the family room were numerous hunting and fishing ornaments. The tree topper, a deer rack.
“It’s going to be fun putting all this away,” Richard beamed. He contributed to the decorating process. Many of the ornaments on the wildlife tree were gifts given to him.
AnnMarie said she and Richard both like to cook and have been doing a lot more entertaining these days.
“We’ve always had parties. We just have more now,” AnnMarie said. “It’s a very sad time for a lot of people. Doing things helps you get through it. I like to be around people.”
