After months of dedicated and hard work, another tractor trailer load of Christmas Trees was sent off to 400 very deserving families, our United States military families.

Pleasant Valley Fire District members, along with "mutual aid" with members of the Milan Fire Department, Millbrook Fire Department, Castle Point Veterans Administration Fire Department and Red Hook Fire Department worked diligently to load the trees into the waiting FEDEX tractor trailer.

This load of Christmas cheer was heading south. Families stationed at Joint Base San Antonio in San Antonio, Joint Reserve Base Fort Worth in Fort Worth, Texas and the Marine Corps Base Quantico in Quantico, Virginia will be receiving Christmas Trees lovingly donated by the residents of the Hudson Valley during multiple fund raisers earlier in the year.

Helping to load the trees this year was Donna Yurista, mother of Marine Corps Captain Trevor Yurista from Pleasant Valley, who was killed in action on October 27, 2008, in Afghanistan.

In addition, the last five trees loaded in the trailer were dedicated to past Pleasant Valley Fire District Commissioner, United States Navy veteran and 70-year Pleasant Valley Fire District member, the late Don Cady Sr., who was always very much a part of the Trees for Troops initiative.

Special thanks to Sean Beresford for his video and editing skills with the attached video of the tree loading.