Ornaments’ Fate Left Up to Outcome of College Football Rivalry

by Rita-Lyn Sanders, Director of Marketing and Communication

GRAND JUNCTION, COLO. - (Dec. 8, 2023) Our first Christmas as a married couple was difficult. Not because we didn’t have any money for gifts (as college students, we had little extra cash for holiday spending), but because every year, right around the time we sat down for Thanksgiving and decorated a tree, our college football teams played their final conference match. Against each other.

I am an Oregon Duck and my husband is an Oregon State Beaver. As you can imagine, a lot was riding on this game (not the least of which is a little thing called pride).

Our first year of marriage, the Ducks lost. And if I recall correctly, the loss knocked us out of the competition to participate in a bowl game, which means I wasn’t going anywhere fun for Christmas like I had the previous year. In 1990, the Ducks flew (or maybe rode on a bus) to the Freedom Bowl in Southern California. As a member of the Oregon Marching Band, we performed pre-game and halftime shows and marched down Main Street in Disneyland. Being a college student in Disneyland with a couple hundred of your friends is big fun.

Two years later, the Ducks won the state rivalry, and we headed to the Independence Bowl in Louisiana.

In my last year as a UO student, the OSU Beavers claimed victory again. My husband was happy, but it was not the way I wanted to end my college football days. Instead of a bowl game that year, the Oregon Marching Band accepted an invitation to travel up north and perform at a Seattle Seahawks game. It was pretty cool to perform in the Kingdome before it was razed just a few years later.

After UO lost, the hurtful pride lasted at least a month — all the way through Christmas until we took down the tree. My husband and I had come to an agreement that we would prolong the enjoyment for whoever won the annual rivalry by creating a winner’s circle of sorts. This victory lap took the triumphant member of the household straight to the top of the Christmas tree, where they could hang their college ornament from the topmost branch that would support its weight.

The OSU Beavers may have come out on top during those initials years of our marriage, but the Ducks quickly caught up and have since proven themselves to be a powerhouse in the world of college football.

When this issue of Colorado Country Life magazine hits your mailbox, the Duck and Beaver game will have been decided, and one of our college ornaments will find its way to the top of the Christmas tree. In future years, though, I do not know how we will decide which ornament deserves the more prominent post. The 2024 Duck football schedule does not include its storied match versus the Beavers, which has been a thing since 1894.

No matter how you adorn your tree or decide which ornament deserves higher prominence, please take note of Grand Valley Power’s holiday safety tips below. Across the U.S. each year, fire departments respond to an average of 200 home structure fires that begin with Christmas trees. Defective lighting — including electrical cords and plugs — cause almost half of all Christmas tree fires.

Take precautions to prevent these tragic occurrences from happening in your home. Consider:

• When choosing an artificial tree, be sure it’s labeled as fire-retardant. When choosing a real tree, select the freshest-looking tree available.
• Place the tree at least 3 three feet away from heating system air registers, fireplaces, and other heat sources.
• Try to position the tree near an electrical outlet to avoid the use of extension cords.
• Adequately support the tree with a stand designed to not tip over.
• Do not use electric lights on metallic trees. Use remote spot or reflective lights.
• Do not use lighted candles or other flaming devices on or near your tree.
• Use lights that are listed by a qualified testing laboratory. Note which lights are for indoor or outdoor use.
• Do not use lights with worn or frayed cords or loose bulb connections.
• Read manufacturer’s instructions for number of light strands to connect.
• Whenever possible, use decorations made with flame-resistant, flame-retardant, or non-combustible materials. • Unplug tree lights when out of the room and before going to sleep.
• Before you put up a fresh tree, cut two inches off the bottom of the trunk and immediately place the tree into a stand that holds at least a half-gallon of water.
• Check a real tree daily and keep the water level above the cut. Initially, a fresh tree may soak up to a gallon of water a day.
• No water additives are necessary. Plain tap water is best.
• Discard the real tree immediately after the holiday.

We wish you a safe and joy-filled holiday season. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!