It was nine years ago today that former Beatle George Harrison passed away from cancer on November 29, 2001. While many Beatles fans will gather at George Harrison's star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame to pay tribute, there is a quieter, more fitting place to remember the 'quiet' Beatle. Way up in the hills of Griffith Park in Los Angeles sits the George Harrison Tree, a Cayman Island Pine planted seven years ago in tribute to the ex-Beatle who prided himself as a gardener.
The George Harrison tree was planted on the opposite end of the parking lot from the Griffith Park Observatory at the Mount Hollywood Hiking Trail. The tree was planted in February 2003 and the following year, on February 22, 2004, a dedication ceremony to unveil a special bronze plaque was held, as the city declared "George Harrison Day" that year in Los Angeles.
At the 2004 dedication ceremony, friends and associates gathered to pay tribute to Harrison including the late singer Billy Preston, singer Jackie Lomax, Council member Tom LaBonge, Chris Carter, host of LA's "Breakfast with the Beatles" and Linda Arias, Olivia Harrison's sister, who read a message sent by Olivia thanking everyone for remembering her husband George.
The bronze plaque placed in front of the George Harrison Tree features a lotus flower and reads: "In memory of a great humanitarian who touched the world as an artist, a musician and a gardener," followed by a quote from George Harrison: 'For the forest to be green, each tree must be green.' George Harrison (1943-2001)
Beatles fans, Pat Tyson and Susan Hancock, who attended the dedication ceremony back in 2004 said that on that cloudy day, as soon as the plaque was unveiled, the sun magically came out, giving special meaning to Harrison's popular song, "Here Comes the Sun." In seven years, the tree, which sits at the base of Mount Hollywood in Griffith Park, has grown from the original 3 feet to over 10 feet now.
source:examiner.com/Trina Yannicos
