No one was more excited about picking up a Christmas tree than David Perez.
The 7-year-old Manteca boy was brimming with excitement as his folks, Ariana and Victor Perez, did their annual tree shopping on this Black Friday.
For the past four years, they’ve done so by making Beck’s Holiday Specialties their one-stop shop.
“We sell everything but lights and ornaments,” said Tom Beck, who along with his brother Jeff Beck, help out his father Rick Beck with the tree lot on Union Road near Louise Avenue come this time of year.
The Beck family made their way from Oregon – specifically, Reedsport located 92 miles southwest of Eugene – earlier this week to set up business, which opened the day after Thanksgiving with an inventory of 2,000 trees.
“We’re usually pretty busy on that first weekend of December,” Tom Beck said.
Beck’s Holiday Specialties with 20 years in the business feature an assortment of Christmas trees, including Douglas fir, Grand fir, Noble fir and Nordmann fir.
They’ve been at the familiar Manteca spot for the past 16 years. “We’ve seen kids from way back when who are now adults with families bringing their children here (for Christmas trees),” Beck said.
The Perez family, meanwhile, went for something different this year.
“We decided on a flocked Christmas tree,” said Victor Perez as his son David, a second grader from nearby Brock Elliott Elementary School, pranced around in joy on the purchase.
Flocked has its advantages, according to Tom Beck.
“It’s fire retardant and state-approved (for business offices) by the fire marshals,” he said.
What’s more, Beck noted that the flock sets the needles on the tree longer and doesn’t require much watering.
“You get it, decorate it, and forget about it,” he said.
Beck’s Holiday Specialty is open from 9 a.m. on weekdays and 10 a.m. on weekends, closing at 9 p.m.
For more information, call 541.999.2946.