I'll be the first to admit: I was wrong about the intent of the NSB Christmas Tree. It doesn't have an official name, but that is what I have dubbed it because it represents a symbol of hope and pride for all of New Smyrna Beach.
When I first learned of the tree in the summer of 2009, I was taken back by the cost: $9,000 purchase plus another $18,000 for installation and wiring, including holiday lights on Canal.
But what I failed to recognize was its value that money can't buy: Hope and pride. It's not just Canal Street's tree, but all of New Smyrna Beach's for that matter.
The tree was purchased with Community Redevelopment Agency funds with a 10-plus year manufacturer's warranty. Because the tree is only up for the holiday season, it's less compromised by the environment of being near the Intracoastal Waterway.
The one issue I had with it last year in its inaugural run and again this year is the lighting issue. It seems like when it rains, some of the lights go out. That was the case even Friday night a short time after the lighting ceremony that drew several hundred people -- mostly families with children.
Perhaps I was the only one to notice it as captured in this still photo taken from my wife, Sera's video, and shown here.
It's probably just a loose connection that comes and goes, but I hope it gets fixed, if that is the case, so it doesn't give critics an excuse to complain.
Sera and I enjoy passing through in the shiny red Audi TT roadster at night and seeing the tree all lit up and the lights on the palms up and down Canal. It was even cooler when we drove in the white Audi TT convertible last year before trading it in for the red one.
I was by Sera's side Friday night as she videotaped the tree lighting and ceremony that followed. Because I had Dale Smith on the reporting assignment, I was able to soak in the festivities.
Sera and I felt a lot of pride for New Smyrna Beach that night; our home and yours, too.
I want to thank Canal Street merchants Cindy Jones and Debbie Peterson for leading the charge to get the tree and making Christmas on Canal a holiday destination for locals and visitors alike. The $3,000 given by the Southeast Volusia Advertising Authority and several thousand more by the CRA for this second annual event is money well spent.
After all, the lights symbolize hope and pride in a time when everyone is praying for better economic times.