Dale Aldridge has been compared to a Christmas elf so many times, it's not exactly clever. But it is spot on.
Since he was little, the Magnolia native has been drawn to the idea of spreading holiday joy via trees and mantels decked in holly, bows and a general spattering of all things red, green and gold.
"My parents would get everything out of the attic to start decorating the next day, but I'd stay up and do the mantel and the tree by myself overnight," Aldridge says. "I can't even describe how wonderful it was to surprise them and see them so happy. Now I get to do that all the time."
As co-owner of floral design firm Silks A Bloom in west Little Rock, Aldridge and his team stay busy in the weeks leading up to Christmas decking out private homes and businesses, including the Statehouse Convention Center and Bill and Hillary Clinton National Airport/Adams Field, with larger-than-life trees and decor.
So when Aldridge was first approached to participate in CARTI Auxiliary's annual Festival of Trees -- a four-night fundraising event that includes plenty of Christmas magic by way of artfully trimmed trees -- his answer was a very quick "yes." Aldridge started donating auction items and decorations to the festival, but he hesitated to take on another task around the holidays. November is a busy season for an elf-for-hire.
"I can't even describe how busy we get," Aldridge says. "But I decided this is what I wanted to get involved in. We block off specific days to participate and turn away business so we can help out."
In 2014, Aldridge joined the planning committee for Festival of Trees' Festival After Dark event, a Thursday night party focused on food and music. Aldridge will co-chair this year's Festival After Dark event along with Silks A Bloom co-owner Tammy Copeland and friends Carrie and Mark Smalling.
The team started planning for the event in January, and Aldridge has had a hand in planning large and small, from hiring a DJ and aerial performers to helping create fresh floral centerpieces for the event. And he's been spreading the word about CARTI and its mission whenever he gets the chance.
"CARTI sets themselves apart by going beyond being a cancer treatment center to helping families, providing education, helping with financial assistance," Aldridge says. "I love that it's emotional support in addition to the medicine and treatment."
Festival of Trees draws more than 4,000 attendees each year, with money going to support CARTI in Little Rock, which this fall opened its new main campus. On a 37-acre site on CARTI Way (formerly Riley Drive) just south of Interstate 630, the 170,000-square-foot, roughly $90 million (that price tag is from an earlier estimate) cancer treatment center now offers multiple treatments (chemotherapy, radiation, etc.) under one roof.
Since the festival started 39 years ago, the events have raised more than $6.5 million.
With so much time spent talking with clients about the holiday season, Aldridge says, it's easy to slip in a plug about Festival of Trees and encourage people to buy a ticket to the Thursday night event he's been so involved in.
"Festival After Dark is my kind of night," Aldridge says. "It's a jeans and sport coat kind of event. A cut-loose, let-your-hair-down evening."
The day of Festival After Dark is one of the few times Aldridge will take off work before the holiday season ends in January. But even after a month of 12-hour days decorating for hundreds of clients, he doesn't tire of holiday fanfare. He'll listen to Christmas music in June if he needs a boost. And Aldridge still finds time to put up "a couple" of trees at his house.
"Actually, there's four," Aldridge says. "I try to put one in everyone's bedroom. And I put lights up on every inch of my roof. That's not even for me, that's for the neighbors to enjoy. I can't help it."
CARTI Auxiliary's Festival of Trees is Nov. 18-21 at the Statehouse Convention Center, 101 E. Markham St. in Little Rock. Festival After Dark will be held at 7 p.m. Nov. 19 at the convention center. Tickets are $50 each with tables available for purchase. For tickets and more information, visit carti.com or call (501) 660-7616.
High Profile on 11/08/2015