Navigation Back Search
Search

Artificial tree farm brings joy to families with special needs

By Lilla Marigza
Dec. 9, 2025 | COOPERSVILLE, Mich. (UM News)

Members of Faith Community Church of Coopersville, Michigan, a United Methodist congregation, host an artificial “tree farm” so that special-needs families can “shop” for Christmas decorations in a sensory-calming environment. Video by Lilla Marigza, UM News.

Having a child with sensory issues, allergies or a physical disability can limit a family’s activities during the Christmas season. A United Methodist congregation in Michigan is creating inclusive holiday experiences so that no child is left out. Every year, Faith Community Church of Coopersville, Michigan, a United Methodist congregation, hosts a sensory- and ability-friendly artificial “tree farm.” Lilla Marigza takes us there.

Watch video

Valley Church member Joe Denson helps a family test the lights on a tree. Denson’s United Methodist church in Allendale, Mich., hosts an artificial “tree farm” every year. Photo by Lilla Marigza, UM News.
Valley Church member Joe Denson helps a family test the lights on a tree. Denson’s United Methodist church in Allendale, Mich., hosts an artificial “tree farm” every year. Photo by Lilla Marigza, UM News.
The worship space at Valley Church in Allendale, Michigan has been transformed into an artificial “tree farm.” The United Methodist congregation holds the event every year for families with special needs and families in need. Photo by Lilla Marigza, UM News.
The worship space at Valley Church in Allendale, Michigan has been transformed into an artificial “tree farm.” The United Methodist congregation holds the event every year for families with special needs and families in need. Photo by Lilla Marigza, UM News.

The artificial tree farm at Faith Community Church of Coopersville is in its fifth year. In 2023, another United Methodist congregation nearby started their own “tree farm” modeled after the one at Faith Community Church.

Valley Church in Allendale, Michigan, held its event this year on the same day and gifted 28 trees. In taking a great idea and multiplying it, these two United Methodist congregations were able to spread Christmas joy to more families.

“It’s good to be the church.,” said Matt Bistayi, lead pastor of Valley Church.

Marigza is a multimedia producer for UM News. Contact her at (615) 742-5470 or newsdesk@umnews.org. To read more United Methodist news, subscribe to the free UM News Digest.

Related Tags

Sign up for our newsletter!

Subscribe Now
General Church
The Baltimore-Washington Conference Center stands in Fulton, Maryland. An appellate court ruled in favor of the conference in a suit filed by 37 churches seeking to leave The United Methodist Church with property. Photo courtesy of the Baltimore-Washington Conference.

Trust clause sees big win in Maryland court
An appellate court ruled in favor of the Baltimore-Washington Conference in a suit filed by 37 churches seeking to leave The United Methodist Church with property. The opinion could influence other cases winding their way through civil courts.
General Church
The Rev. Paul Seay. Photo courtesy of the author.

Leadership Gathering should focus on local church
United Methodist leaders have benignly neglected local congregations for too long, a pastor writes. Any effort to revitalize the denomination must focus on them.
Mission and Ministry
A member of a United Methodist Volunteers in Mission Disaster Response Team from Virginia works to clear a flood-damaged home in Western North Carolina during the days following Hurricane Helene in 2024. Photo by Lilla Marigza, UM News.

50 years of turning faith into action
From disaster zones to mission fields around the world, United Methodist Volunteers in Mission marks a half-century of making a difference.

United Methodist Communications is an agency of The United Methodist Church

©2026 United Methodist Communications. All Rights Reserved