PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — A sure sign of the impending holiday season is the arrival of a giant evergreen to adorn Portland’s Monument Square.
A 40-foot balsam fir that was planted four decades ago by Portland resident Richard Olsen has arrived, but the lights won’t be turned on until the day after Thanksgiving.
Sadly, Olsen won’t bet there to witness it. He died in October 2020 at age 80, and his wife donated the tree.
“I’ll be very happy to see it in Monument Square because it’s something he always wanted,” Patricia Olsen, who was married to Richard for 43 years, told the Portland Press Herald.
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