Celebrating a 60th? Plant a tree for free

According to Wikipedia, the number 60 – the “natural” number between 59 and 61 – is “semiperfect”* and “highly composite”**. Sound like anyone you know who may have been born in 1948 and is celebrating a 60th birthday?

Even if "60 is the new 40," turning 60 can be tough for some people, particularly if well-meaning friends shower them with “over the hill” themed gifts. I’m not sure where the hill starts, but I don’t see any reason why you can’t keep going up at 60, 70, 80, or more. My husband and I went to see a Tony Bennett concert the other day. Tony is celebrating 60 years of “connecting to people everywhere through the magic of his music,” according to his official website. He may be 82 years old, but you’d never know it by listening to him. He played a solid 90 minutes and thrilled the 10,000 people in the audience with his wonderful performance.

Israel is also celebrating its 60th anniversary. In honor of this occasion, the Jewish National Fund (JNF) will plant a tree in honor of anyone who is 60 years old or has been married for at least 60 years. (Mayme and Clarence Vail, are you listening?) There is no charge – it’s absolutely free.


Visit the JNF website for your free tree

What’s so great about planting a tree in Israel?
From the JNF website: “Over the past century, the JNF family has planted over 240 million trees, built over 180 dams and reservoirs, developed over 250,000 acres of land, created more than 1,000 parks throughout Israel and educated students around the world about Israel and the environment. Through the support of donors around the world, the JNF family was able to ensure that Israel was the only nation in the world to end the 20th century with more trees than it had at the beginning.”

With Earth Day just past, a lot of us are thinking about what we can do to help protect our environment. So this is perfect: The earth needs trees. JNF will plant one for free. You feel great about something really cool in honor of a 60th birthday (or anniversary). The recipient is happy to get something that’s not another “you know you’re 60 when…” gift. Everybody wins.

And the JNF will send out a beautiful personalized commemorative certificate, which Purple Raincoat will be happy to turn into a framed keepsake that would help anyone feel great about celebrating this milestone. Visit Purple Raincoat to see our newest examples of unique special event framed keepsakes and anniversary keepsakes that make perfect gifts for life's special celebrations.

*semiperfect (10 times a perfect number)
**highly composite (has 11 different divisors).