All are invited to attend the 14th annual CT Tree Climbing Competition, to be held on Saturday, May 5th, at the CT Veterans Healthcare & Residential Facility in Rocky Hill. If seeing 25 of the state and region’s most spirited climbers participate in the competition is not enough of a draw, this is also an opportunity to see the substantial progress in the construction of the Healing Garden that is taking place under CTPA’s leadership.
The CTCC has become a time-honored tradition of the CTPA because it is fun and engaging for those who watch. It allows the climbers to show the skill, the knowledge and the dedication to detail, athleticism and technique that it takes to climb a tree well. Although there are very good climbers – men and women – who participate in the event, the competition is not just about finding out who is the best. There is a range of people who participate, virtually of whom are testing themselves against their own expectations as well as seeing how they do against the other climbers. This leads to a strong sense of camaraderie among the participants. This spirit can be sensed by all who are there – to climb, to volunteer or to watch. It is a fun day.
This year’s competition will be special because it is to take place at the Veterans Healthcare & Residential Facility. In part, it is being held there as an outgrowth of the work on the Healing Garden. In the course of working on the Garden, the volunteers noticed that there are some pretty good trees nearby and that this would make a good place for the climbing competition. More importantly, the CTCC organizers saw that choosing this venue would be an opportunity to give something back to the veterans who need to spend a lot of time at this facility. It is not about entertaining the veterans, it is about meeting them, where they are today, in a way that says ‘thank you’.
The Competition starts at around 8 am on the morning of May 5th and will run through most of the day. The preliminary events tend to wrap up by the early afternoon. The Masters Competition, to determine the Connecticut champions, will be held after that, finishing by mid-afternoon.
The Veterans Facility is located off of Exit 23 on I-91, at 287 West Street in Rocky Hill, across the street from Dinosaur State Park.
It is worth the effort to come spend part of a Saturday at the event.
