Patrick and Barbara McGrath get some final shots of their towering Norway spruce as it is removed from their North Roanoke County yard by a crew from the city on Tuesday.

Photos by STEPHANIE KLEIN-DAVIS The Roanoke Times

City worker Robert Huffman shapes the trunk of a 27-foot Norway spruce Tuesday to fit into its stand in the Wachovia Tower Plaza in downtown Roanoke.

The 27-foot Norway spruce spent most of its life growing near a ditch along Green Ridge Road, providing shade and shelter for a pair of cardinals and a small flock of mourning doves.

It was removed by city workers on Tuesday to spend the next several weeks as Roanoke's Christmas tree. It was 27.

It is survived by the family who donated it to the city: Patrick and Barbara McGrath and their three children, Sean, 13, Brian, 10, and Katherine, 8.

The tree also leaves behind several cones scattered around the yard and a silver maple sapling that will be planted in its place by Brian sometime in the coming weeks.

Although it's gone from Green Ridge Road in Roanoke County, the spruce will spend its final days as the center of attention in Wachovia Tower Plaza, where city workers hauled it Tuesday. It will be festooned with nearly 1,300 lights and dedicated by Mayor David Bowers on Dec. 4.

Barbara McGrath said she and her husband contacted the city about the tree after seeing stories about past Christmas trees obtained by Roanoke.

"It's too big for its spot here," she said. "My children were upset when they found out the tree was going. They were happier when we told them it was going downtown for Christmas."

Brian was particularly happy. His 11th birthday falls on Dec. 2, but because it's a school night, his parents had planned to wait until the weekend to celebrate it. Now he'll stand on stage the Friday the tree goes up to help Bowers dedicate it.

Dan Henry, the city's urban forester, helped supervise the eight-man operation that removed the tree from the McGraths' yard. He watched as tree trimmer Mike Webster moved a crane to help guide the tree to a soft landing. Tree trimmer Wayne Embrey then scaled the spruce to wrap a strap from the crane around it.

And then, carefully, Robert Huffman approached with a chain saw and carefully sliced through the trunk. The tree was guided onto a flatbed truck and moved downtown while a small crew remained behind to grind the stump.

Roanoke horticulturist Marilyn Arbogast gave a sort of eulogy as she described what city officials seek in the ideal Christmas tree -- traits that all applied to this particular Norway spruce.

"Nicely shaped, single trunk, easy access. Full all the way around. No holes in it, because we don't have a corner of the room to put the bad side to," Arbogast said.

A celebration of the tree and its symbolic representation of the holiday season will begin next week.

"My neighbors asked me every year, 'When will you decorate the tree?' " Barbara McGrath said. "Now I can tell them, 'Guess what? It'll be decorated by professionals and will be beautiful. It'll go out with a bang.' "