Free Christmas trees, from surprise source, fuel holiday cheer

Throngs of Las Vegas Valley residents flocked to a county park Wednesday to pick up free Christmas trees left there anonymously.

By the end of the day, the secret Santa was known. But he was an unexpected source.

Clark County didn’t disclose where the trees came from but put out a press release telling the public to come grab a tannenbaum. By nightfall, the Associated Press reported disgraced ex-Assemblyman Steven Brooks was responsible.

A seemingly strange end to the Christmas Eve tale didn’t stop the smiles, though.

Each group or individual that showed up to claim a tree at Sunset Park had a different reason, including 15-year-old James Mulford, who wanted to help someone else.

The Las Vegas teen is friends with a family of seven that has fallen on tough financial times this year, with medical bills and missed work. The family didn’t even have a Christmas tree.

So Mulford leapt at the opportunity when he heard at the last minute that free, fresh trees were available.

“I was like, ‘Let’s go get them a tree,’ ” said James, who was joined by his mother, Ann Bird, his father, Jimmy Mulford, and his 12-year-old brother, Sean Mulford.

Nearly 350 evergreens were dropped off Wednesday morning, left for the taking. Word of the free trees — many still wrapped in wire — spread quickly. Sunset Park is one of several in Clark County that accepts trees for recycling from Dec. 26 to Jan. 15. The Springs Preserve and most Las Vegas Valley Lowe’s stores take them, too.

Despite the nearness of the holiday’s approach, those who showed up carefully picked out their trees just the same — inspecting the branches and height before loading up their piece of Christmas magic.

“If there was a day for good stories, Christmas Eve is it,” said Tom Rivera of Henderson, who picked up a couple of trees for family and friends.

A fresh tree for Christmas Day is best with its pine smell, Rivera said.

For Abdon Alicea of Las Vegas, it offered a chance to obtain a large tree to replace the small artificial tree his family’s 2-year-old daughter keeps knocking over. Plus, his 6-year-old daughter kept asking for a real tree.

“I was pretty surprised,” he said of the free trees. “The real trees are expensive.”

Elquan Huggins of Henderson said: “It’s definitely a blessing.”

He had put off getting a Christmas tree this year, with a tight budget and bills.

But having a tree makes the holiday complete for Huggins.

“I didn’t feel the Christmas spirit too much, but when I found out I can get a tree, I said, ‘I can have a chance to make it happen.’ ”

The trees were given away on a first-come, first-served basis. The county’s only request: If you take a tree, recycle it.

Brooks, the apparent tree donor, gained notoriety in March 2013, when he became the first state lawmaker ever expelled from the Nevada Legislature. He served time in a San Bernardino County, California after police there say he led officers on a high-speed chase the same day he was kicked out of the Nevada Assembly. Police said he threw metal objects out the window of his SUV as they chased him down Interstate 15.

A California judge said he had fulfilled a nearly three-year sentence by credit for time served.

Brooks, who formerly represented North Las Vegas, told the AP Wednesday he was selling the trees to fundraise for a nonprofit called Freedom Enhancement Academy.

State records list Brooks’ wife, Ada Yllas, as the president, director, treasurer and secretary of the organization, which develops math and science programs for students. In 2010 the nonprofit was inactive. It was reinstated in October, according to the Nevada secretary of state’s office.

Review-Journal writers Wesley Juhl and Kimber Laux contributed to this report. Contact Ben Botkin at bbotkin@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2904. Find him on Twitter: @BenBotkin1.