The ‘Resilience Tree’

Montecito accountant and inveterate travel writer Frank McGinity is raising the Christmas spirit!

Frank, a longtime resident of Riven Rock, the new home of Prince Harry and his wife Meghan Markle, has continued a long-held tradition and erected a 120-foot-tall Yuletide tree on his estate.

“Stanley McCormick, who lived here for forty years, always had a large lighted Christmas tree,” explains Frank. “In those days you could see the tree from as far away as Santa Barbara Harbor.

“Stanley was the son of Cyrus McCormick, the inventor of the reaper. Because of a form of schizophrenia, Stanley was confined to an 87-acre estate here with two male nurses around the clock. But Stanley was assiduous in maintaining the many gardens and trees on the property.”

Frank says he likes to follow that historical tradition in his own small way.

“I think it is particularly important to light this cannery pine during this difficult time for our community,” he adds. “I call it my resilience tree!”

Branching out in the most delightful way…