Faith Presbyterian Church in Inverness transformed dying Christmas trees into a useful material for another season –– mulch for Spring gardens.

The church rented a wood chipper and shredded more than 260 trees from 8 a.m.-4 p.m. Jan. 3. Church member Grady Trammell said volunteers were astounded by the event’s success.

“There was really a steady flow of people and there are still people bringing in trees although we no longer have the wood chipper,” Trammell said.

The church does still have in its possession piles of leftover mulch. Members were so pleased that they plan to offer the service again next year.

“Our main focus was to provide a service to the community,” Trammell said. “We hope that it does send a message that there is a church that wants to help the community in any way it can.”

Trammell said the work helps the church carry out the Biblical mandate to “tend and watch over” the garden. Faith Presbyterian is located at 4601 Valleydale Road, just across from Jefferson State Community College in North Shelby County.

Their website is http://www.faith-pca.org.