Aissen Tree Farm hosts Shop with a Cop

LUXEMBURG – Tammy Aissen, co-owner of Aissen Tree Farm alongside her husband Jeff, has been in the Christmas tree business since she was a young child. Her grandfather and father started a tree farm in Wisconsin Rapids with over 500 acres, and she and her brothers grew up working on the farm.

Aissen and her husband started their own Christmas tree business in 1980, but didn’t have their own farm until 1988. Their current farm, located at E1105 WI-29, offers cut-your-own and pre-cut trees, live greens and a gift shop with ornaments and potential gifts.

“We have a local gal that we just found that makes ornaments herself. So we try to promote local as much as we can. We have local honey, maple syrup, candles, mittens and more that are all homemade,” Aissen said.

The farm also supports the Shop with a Cop program, providing holiday experiences for local children.

“They come here first, and it’s a big deal. They get to shop in the gift shop with the officer. Each one is paired up with an officer, and they get to pick an ornament of their choice, compliments of the farm,” Aissen said. “And then we have Santa here. They coordinate Santa, and everyone gets their picture with Santa in the sleigh. And the place comes alive. We get a huge group shot of Santa with all the officers, the kids and our staff. It’s been a good experience, and that’s where we like to support our local sheriff’s department, they’re very generous to these kids. It’s a really positive, fun experience.”

The farm aims to be family friendly with inclusions like a life-size gingerbread playhouse for kids, so parents can search the fields alone or sit down and watch them play. Complimentary hot chocolate and apple cider are available to keep warm while wandering the fields.

“That’s what Christmas is about, is bringing the family, spending time together,” Aissen said.

Former Packers player Donald Driver got his tree from Aissen Farm three years in a row, taking advantage of that family experience.

“He was so friendly. Two times they came before we even opened, and they just wanted an experience with their family and to go out and cut a tree,” Aissen said. “And then one time, he came right when we were busy, and he just hung out with people and just signed autographs, and his wife was here with her brand new baby then and then his kids made some wreaths with us. It was really a great experience.”

Other Packers have also purchased their trees from the farm, including Donald Driver, Mike McCarthy, AJ Hawk and Matt Flynn.

One of the farm’s most unique practices is the naming of their trees. Each tree is given a human name, which has served not only as a useful system for differentiating between trees once they have gone through the baler, but also as an opportunity for holiday magic.

“People just love it,” Aissen said. “They lose somebody close in their family, and they’ll find that name in the field or the pre-cut trees. It’s amazing how often that happens.”

Although the farm is only open from mid-November through Christmas Eve, the work is year-round.

“The amount of hours before we even open is pretty much 365 days,” Aissen said.

Aissen and her two children Skyla and Garrit spend the offseason caring for the trees, weeding and collecting material like loose boughs and pinecones to create wreaths and kissing balls. Skyla grew up working on the farm and married her neighbor, Nathan, who worked beside her for 13 years. Garrit is also dating a neighbor who has assisted with the farm since she was in middle school. Aissen hopes the family tradition will continue on and Skyla and Nathan’s son will take over the farm someday, becoming the fifth generation of tree farmers and sharing the farm’s holiday experience and community connections with other families for years to come.