Trees at Wines Park — Planted for People They'd Never Meet
Reading old issues of the Lehi Free Press, Paige discovered that a hundred years ago, families could sponsor a tree at Wines Park for a dollar or two. Not Christmas trees — the actual trees now standing in the park. Families who didn't have much gave what they could, knowing the trees would outlast them. Many of their descendants still live in Lehi.
Key Lessons
- • The best investments in community are made for people you'll never meet
- • Local history is often hiding in plain sight
- • Generational sacrifice is one of the foundations of a great community
Community Connections
Stories, people, and ideas that connect across the archive — ranked by shared themes, guests, places, and topics.
Related Episodes
(4)How Holiday Decorations Bring Communities Together — A Lehi Neighbor’s Story
Mike Willes
Exploring Lehi's Rich Rodeo Tradition with Mike Southwick
Mike Southwick
From Paintbrushes to Pioneer Parades: Keith & Suzanne Pulham
Keith and Suzanne Pulham
Why Local Journalism Still Matters | Roots and Branches of Lehi with Sally Francom
Sally Francom
Related People
(4)Lara Bangerter
Manager, Lehi Historical Society & Archives
Mark Johnson
Mayor of Lehi, Former City Council Member, Engineer & Business Owner
Paige Albrecht
Lehi City Council Member, Attorney, Community Advocate
Phil Hanks
Grandson of Ephraim Hanks · Mission President (Samoa) · Temple President (Samoa) · Church Education System Leader · Stake President · Senior Missionary (Ukraine, Freiburg) · Lehi Resident
Related Stories
(4)Trees Planted for People They'd Never Meet — Wines Park and Generational Sacrifice
Paige Albrecht
The Book Brigade — Lehi Moves a Library by Hand
Lara Bangerter
George Goates and the Sugar Beets — A Story About What Lehi Is Made Of
Lara Bangerter
Buying the 1899 Brick Home — Putting Your Money Where Your Mouth Is
Paige Albrecht
Related Quotes
(4)"Small things grow into big things."
— Lara Bangerter
"I really wanted my kids to have a hometown."
— Paige Albrecht
"The hardest thing is not to have cancer yourself, but to love someone who has cancer."
— Paige Albrecht
"We collect, preserve, organize, protect, and share anything and everything Lehi."
— Lara Bangerter
Related Themes
(4)Volunteerism
Lehi's century-long tradition of residents building their own city through service — from book brigades and sponsored park trees to committee work and parade committees.
Family Legacy
The stories of families who planted roots in Lehi across generations — the ones who built the traditions, the parks, the businesses, and the sense of belonging that others now enjoy.
Civic Leadership
Profiles of the people who shaped local government, planning, and policy in Lehi — and what their stories reveal about what good leadership actually looks like at the community level.
Community Resilience
How Lehi residents have navigated challenge, change, growth, and hardship — and emerged with optimism, connection, and a deeper appreciation for what they've built together.
More from Paige Albrecht
Paige Albrecht
Baby Land — A Place of Refuge Most People Don't Know About
Asked what she was most proud of in ten years of public service, Paige bypassed the fire stations and police building. She talked about Baby Land — a specially designated section of the Lehi Cemetery for infants, with a beautiful statue. Her nephew and his wife lost their baby and found it there. 'That's when you know you live in a community that cares — even when nobody's watching.'
Paige Albrecht
A Canceled Softball League and the Birth of a Public Servant
Paige bought her husband a softball team for Christmas — wrote a poem and gave him his own roster. For a few years it was wonderful. Then the league was canceled. She researched, went to city council, stood at the podium, and left feeling defeated. But she stayed for the whole meeting. And the next. For eight years, before holding any office, she attended city council and Planning Commission meetings every week — simply because the process fascinated her.
Paige Albrecht
A Promise Kept: The Softball League Returns After Ten Years
Ten years after the men's softball league was canceled, Paige posted a photo of her oldest son playing on his own softball team in the same league. The park space materialized. The lights went up. Even the mink farm moved. 'Promise kept,' she says. She was careful to note she had almost nothing to do with it — it was departments, staff, years of planning, and many unseen contributors.
Related Stories
Charlene Freestone
The Natural Parenting Boutique on Lehi Main Street
Charlene opened a natural parenting boutique — Boot Baby Boutique — in the old Lehi Hotel near the train tracks on Lehi Main Street. The shop sold cloth diapers and baby carriers, but its heart was parent education and community space. She rented from a midwife in a building that also housed a gem shop and wedding dress rentals. The business later moved up to Sandy but represented a season where business and belonging overlapped.
Charlene Freestone
COVID Ends One Chapter and Opens Another
On the day of the Utah earthquake in 2020, Charlene realized parents were not going to bring small children into stores the same way anymore. She folded her boutique quickly, sold her share to co-owners, and stepped away from both retail and nonprofit worlds. She then worked at her children's school as a teacher's aide during COVID, witnessing how everyone banded together to keep things going.
Charlene Freestone
I'm Back, But This Time I'm Helping
Charlene's son was born with needs requiring surgeries. A nurse with child passenger safety training helped her family during the car seat oxygen test. Exactly 12 years later, Charlene began working with Intermountain at Utah Valley Hospital — on the exact anniversary of her son's discharge. Looking at her badge, she thought: 'I'm back, but this time I'm helping people here.'