The University will purchase this year’s Candlelight Celebration “Giving Tree” from a local vendor for the first time since the celebration began in 1995, said Nancy Little, University public affairs coordinator.The tree will be purchased from Two Roosters Tree Farm, located in Ethel, La., Little said.”We really wanted to celebrate Louisiana,” Little said. “I really wanted to focus on Louisiana vendors and companies that can help us put on the event.” Previous trees were purchased from tree farms in Washington and Oregon for about $6,000, but this year’s tree will only cost about $500 after delivery, Little said.The hunt for the right tree was difficult because a lot of larger trees were taken by hurricanes, she said.The tree, a 15-year-old red cedar, is relatively native to Louisiana and will grow about 25 feet tall, said James Cox, owner of Two Roosters Tree Farm. A campus arbor crew will care for the tree, which will be located in front of the Memorial Tower at the end of November, Little said.The tree will last a month or longer on a diet of about a gallon of water a day, Cox said.Little said the University plans to plant a permanent tree for the 2010 Candlelight Celebration to promote sustainability. This year, the tree will be decorated with LED lights, which are an energy-saving alternative to standard lights.The tree will be mulched after the holiday season ends and become covering for the roots of University oak trees, Little said.Moshe Cohen, director of Hillel at LSU, said he hopes all religions will be represented around the holiday season.Other religious events, like Kwanzaa and Hanukah, will be recognized, according to the Candlelight Celebration’s Web site.”It’s important to celebrate diversity on our campus with our community, and even though Hanukah is only a minor religious holiday, a ceremony on an occasion like this gives us the opportunity to educate our University family,” Cohen said.Cohen said though putting a tree on campus does not bother him, other religions could associate the tree with Christianity. Reham Awad, human ecology freshman, said she is Muslim, but she is not bothered by a tree on campus.”I’m used to [a tree] because I see it everywhere this time of year,” Awad said.Lindsay Morgan, education freshman and Unitarian Universalist, said she isn’t offended because the majority of the University’s population is Christian. The Candlelight Celebration will take place in front of the Memorial tower at 5 p.m on Dec. 1. —-Contact Kristen M’lissa Rowlett at [email protected]