Tavy Sandin shared the following pictures of the first community Christmas tree in Dhahran. The pictures, taken in the very early '50s, are of the building of the first tree in the 7th St. Christmas Tree Circle.
Tim writes, "My dad, H.L. "Sandin" and his neighbors, one being Chuck Mathews, were responsible for the design and building of the tree. This all began about 1952 when the residents decided to enter the 7-unit portion of the Company-held competition for best Christmas decorations. Electricity was provided by connection to the electric box which fed the center light pole in the grassy area in the middle of the circle. Chicken wire was strung around the pole in the shape of a tree. Then, branches were collected from the Imhoff gardens, cut to lengths and stuck into the chicken wire. A door was put on one side of the tree so under tree access was possible. This was needed so that Santa could emerge on Christmas morning from inside the tree and provide presents to the children of the "Circle." Lights were strung around the tree. Residents decorated their portion of the units and many roofs supported plastic decor.
"The picture of the kids is me, Tavy Sandin, around 1953, proudly displaying my new bike for that year. The girl is one of the Earlameyer sisters who lived in one of the two detached houses located at the entrance to the circle.
"After the dedicated weekend building the tree, a group BBQ was held on Friday evening, to celebrate the season. It was inevitable that "Christmas Tree Circle" annually dominated the 7-unit category in the competition. Good times, great memories."
If you have old photographs you'd like to share with the Aramco ExPats community, please submit them to info@aramcoexpats.com.