Regina Y's Men out of the Christmas tree-selling business

Regina's "Y's Men" Service Club is out of the Christmas tree selling business and is considering its future options.

The club had been selling Christmas trees for 68 years, using some of the money for charity, but 2016 was the last year for the tree sales.

"Our club has simply gotten too small to manage the Christmas tree sales in an effective manner, and as the years have gone by, we're selling fewer and fewer trees," said Ted O'Brien, a volunteer with the club.

O'Brien said there are only a handful of people in the club and more members are needed if the club is to continue operating.

"We simply need new members to be viable," said club president Darcy Ehman in a news release.

"A lot rested on what we were able to achieve in those three weeks of sales during the month of December but it was always a lot of fun," O'Brien said, reflecting on the years gone by.

"People come to the tree lots, they're out looking for a tree, they're getting in the Christmas spirit."

The tree sales have been taken over by McKay Christmas Trees, a North Battleford-based company, and trees are being sold in a lot at Victoria Square mall.

That company will work with the organizations formerly supported by the Y's Men. One of them is the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation.

"All the money contributed by the Regina Y's Men over the many, many years goes to research," said Randy Durovich, fundraising co-ordinator with the foundation.

He said the organization thanks the Y's Men for their work over the years.