Curry Farms joins Trees for Troops

A Richland tradition meets a national mission

On the Saturday before Thanksgiving, Bentley and Sandy Curry stood among rows of Leyland Cypress trees on the eight acres of their 39-acre farm in Rayville.

With saws in hand and a team by their side, they carefully selected and cut 75 trees, each between five and seven feet tall. By Monday morning, the trees were wrapped and ready for FedEx pickup, bound for Fort Polk in Vernon Parish where they will brighten the homes of military families this Christmas.

This marks the first year Curry Farms has donated trees directly to the Trees for Troops program, though their support began six years ago. Each holiday season, the Currys sell Trees for Troops Bears, with proceeds going to help defray shipping costs for the program.

“It’s something we’ve always believed in,” said Sandy Curry. “This year, we wanted to take it a step further and send trees ourselves.”

Curry Farms is one of the few live Christmas tree farms in northeast Louisiana, and it is more than just a place to pick out a tree. It is a seasonal destination. Open from October through December, the farm offers a pumpkin patch, corn maze, hayrides and more than 30 familyfriendly activities including bounce pillows, duck races, gemstone sluicing, and goat feeding. Generations of families have made it part of their holiday tradition, and for Bentley and Sandy, married for over 50 years, it is a labor of love rooted in legacy.

The land itself carries history. Curry Farms is a fourth-generation property first cultivated by Bentley’s great-grandfather, John Robinson, in the mid-1800s.

The Currys planted their first 1,000 Virginia Pine trees in 1981 and sold their first harvest in 1983. Today, they grow Leyland Cypress and Blue Ice and also offer premium-grade Fraser Fir trees shipped in from North Carolina. Their children and grandchildren still return each Thanksgiving weekend to help out and soak in the magic of the farm.

This year, that magic extends beyond Rayville. Through Trees for Troops, Curry Farms joins a national network of growers who donate real Christmas trees to military families across the country and overseas. Since its founding in 2005 by the Christmas SPIRIT Foundation in partnership with FedEx, the program has delivered more than 326,000 trees to troops and families stationed at bases in the United States and abroad.

FedEx Freight alone has logged over one million miles transporting trees, ensuring that the gift of a fresh, farm-grown Christmas tree reaches families wherever they are.

In 2025, Trees for Troops expects to collect about 16,000 donated trees from more than 300 familyowned farms in 25 states, delivering them to around 90 military bases across all five branches of service. Curry Farms’ contribution of 75 Leyland Cypress trees is part of that larger effort, helping bring holiday spirit to Fort Polk families.

For Bentley and Sandy Curry, the donation is about more than numbers. It is about connection.

“We hope these trees bring joy and a little piece of home to the families at Fort Polk,” Bentley said.

And for the families who receive them, the gift of a real Christmas tree often carries deep meaning. The Christmas SPIRIT Foundation regularly hears from military families who say the tree was the best gift they received all season, a reminder of home during a time when loved ones may be far away.

With their first direct donation complete, the Currys plan to continue supporting Trees for Troops in the years ahead. It is one more way their farm, steeped in tradition and community, continues to grow, branching out from Rayville to touch lives far beyond.