There is, improbably, a giraffe coming out of the tree, his legs poking out front, his sweet face a less-than-angelic tree topper. A few aisles over, on a table, there's a dragon made of gingerbread that quite amazingly bellows smoke. And across the wide room, fairies are flying in an upside-down tree.

Welcome to the Festival of Trees, where laughter, tears and the joy of the season express themselves not only with angels and ornaments, but also with yellow ducklings and screwdrivers, musical instruments and Transformers, soccer balls and tiny Harley-Davidson motorcycles.

More than 800 trees — half large and half small — have been decorated and donated to the festival, which raises money to provide charity care at Primary Children's Medical Center. Others have donated gingerbread houses and knickknacks and crafts and wreaths. There are a few items of furniture and a couple of beautifully detailed kid-sized playhouses. And it's all on display at the South Towne Exposition Center today through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily.

Last year, the event raised close to $1.5 million. "But the hospital gave more than $7 million in charity care," says Sharon Smith, publicity co-chairwoman.

This year, cowboys and penguins and "I Believe" are major themes. There's a "Nightmare Before Christmas" tree and a bright red Elmo tree.

Many of the trees honor individuals who died and are sorely missed. One of Karen Hansen's favorites is the "All Star Quack Up," which started with yellow ducks to honor Cody Snyder, who died at age 5. The tree is the brainchild of his mother, Angela. The little boy became an organ donor and he will continue to help others with the sale of his tree, which includes an unbelievable amount of autographed sports memorabilia, collected by his uncle, Cory Snyder, who played for the Cleveland Indians. Hansen, a festival board member, points out a couple of the treasures: The signed football that was given to LaVell Edwards when he retired from BYU coaching and a Steve Young autographed jersey.

The tree Kent J. Sorensen's family and friends created to honor their "Man for All Seasons" highlights camping, hiking and skiing and includes gift certificates to outdoor retailers, among other things.

The tree for Chelsea Eskelson-Patterson, who died in a car crash at age 20, is full of shimmery golds and browns. The upside-down tree for Kristie Larsen has fairies and dragonflies. And the tree created by friends of Desirae and Travis Bastian, brother and sister who died in a car crash, is best described by its name: "Peace in the Clouds."

"Ropin' in Christmas" includes a rodeo theme and a tree made of lassos, while a "Screwed-Up Christmas" features screws and nails and tons of tools. There's a ladybug tree and one featuring origami decorations, as well as one with a scrapbooking theme and lots of materials to get the job done.

At the tree put together by Harley Davidsons Across America, the lamp, the little animals and the insignias are thematic, donated by various shops nationwide, according to Smith.

As for that giraffe tree, it was — wait for it — created by the Tall Club of SLC, with support from Federal Financial Group. Decidedly not "short" on humor, it includes a bikini-clad giraffe (one of about 50 different long-necked creatures), giraffe-skin wrapping paper on the gifts and other whimsical touches.

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E-mail: lois@desnews.com