For the 10th year in a row, FedEx Corp. and the Christmas SPIRIT Foundation are making the holidays a little brighter for America’s service members and their families with the Trees for Troops program.

The program brings together FedEx, the Christmas SPIRIT Foundation and tree farmers across America to deliver real Christmas trees to service members stationed across the U.S. and overseas.

During the busy weeks leading up to Christmas, FedEx will deliver more than 17,000 live Christmas trees to more than 60 military bases.

"Delivering Christmas trees to our troops is one of our most treasured holiday traditions,” said Bill Logue, president and CEO, FedEx Freight.

The Trees for Troops initiative kicked off this week in Thorntown, Ind., as FedEx volunteers helped prepare nearly 200 live Christmas trees to be shipped to service members stationed overseas. The Christmas trees, donated by members of the Indiana Christmas Tree Growers Association, will be delivered to service members stationed in the Middle East and South Pacific via the FedEx Express hub in Indianapolis. 

Once the international deliveries have taken flight, FedEx Freight will hit the road with more than 17,000 fresh-cut Christmas trees to be delivered to U.S. military bases beginning Dec. 1, with final deliveries scheduled for Dec. 13. Many of these deliveries include special holiday festivities in which military families receive their anticipated Christmas tree.

As part of the program, National Christmas Tree Association members around the country donate thousands of fresh trees to Trees for Troops through the Christmas SPIRIT Foundation. The public can support Trees for Troops by donating to the program and/or purchasing fresh trees at one of more than 30 Christmas tree retail locations nationally during the official Trees for Troops weekend, Dec. 5-7. Donated trees will be added to the program’s planned deliveries to U.S. bases during 2014. More information on how to get involved can be found at www.treesfortroops.org.

Trees for Troops will also send holiday greetings to service members this year with the Tag-a-Tree campaign. Tweet your message using the hashtag #TreesforTroops from Nov. 18-25, and your message may be selected for placement on a tag for one of the 17,000 Christmas trees going to troops across the country.

Trees for Troops is part of FedEx Special Delivery, a nationwide FedEx program that supports local organizations by donating transportation services and other assistance to help them fulfill their missions. Since the Trees for Troops program launched in 2005, FedEx has shipped more than 139,000 real Christmas trees to service members and their families—covering every branch of the military at more than 60 bases in 17 countries.