Above) 475th Engineer Company at Camp Buehring, KU in Doha in 2016; Local veterans at Kaleidoscope Farms in 2019.

MEDIA RELEASE__Kaleidoscope Farms, 14841 Co Rd 54, Mt Cory, is continuing its 31-year tradition of inviting local veterans to the farm to select Christmas trees to send to troops stationed overseas during the holidays. This year, the event will be Nov. 8 at 2:00 p.m., the Sunday before Veterans Day.

“By working with Operation Evergreen, our family gets to celebrate Veteran’s Day in a special way at Kaleidoscope Farms,” said Matt Reese, VP of marketing for the farm. “It is an honor to get to spend a few minutes on the farm recognizing veterans in the area and give back a little something to those currently serving. It is also a great way to team up with others in our community for a good cause. Sometimes we hear back from the troops who have received our trees over the years. It means a lot to them to get just a simple reminder of back home, especially during the holidays.” 

Each year, Ohio’s Operation Evergreen Program sends around 100 Christmas trees from Ohio's Christmas tree growers. Local elementary students, high school students, and community groups also visit the farm to deliver ornaments they have made to ship along with the trees. In 2025, there were well over 3,000 ornaments brought to the farm. The trees and ornaments then go from the farm to the Ohio Department of Agriculture, where officials will inspect the trees before they are shipped to U.S. troops stationed around the world. 

In 2026, Operation Evergreen plans to send Christmas trees to troops serving in the Southwest Asian Theater. Operation Evergreen is coordinated by the Ohio Christmas Tree Association and funded by $10,000 to $15,000 in annual donations to cover the shipping costs of $200 per tree. 

A portion of proceeds from the Operation Evergreen Tag Day at Kaleidoscope Farms will go towards shipping costs.