By all accounts, Charlotte shouldn't be alive, much less delighting those in her presence. She was born with a complicated disorder affecting two separate chromosomes, a condition so rare that Hayes, who lives in Taylorsville, has been able to find only one other documented case which exactly mirrors her daughter's.

It is Hayes' gratitude for her daughter's life that has motivated her to join with Holladay resident Debbie Dye and other members of Support Organization For Trisomy 18, 13 and Related Disorders (SOFT) to decorate and donate a tree to the Festival of Trees.

The festival's roots extend back 36 years, when it was begun by the hospital's Women's Endowment Committee. That first year, although just 60 trees were decorated, over $47,000 was raised. In 2005, those numbers had swelled to 700 donated trees and nearly $1.5 million.

"Each year the tree is called 'our SOFT Angel,' " says Dye, who serves as one of two chapter chairpersons for the SOFT organization in Utah. "There is always an angel decoration. This year [we are using] little snowmen angels."

Dye knows firsthand what it is like to love and care for a child with one of the many Trisomy disorders. Her daughter Morganne was born eight years ago with Trisomy 18 and lived just seven months.

When they took her home from the hospital, "we were looking forward to how long we would have her," Dye remembers.

While most people are familiar with another chromosomal disorder, Down's Syndrome, few are aware of Trisomy because 90 percent of the children born with it or related disorders die within the first week of life. Those who do survive rarely talk or walk, and frequently have the mental and physical capacity of infants.

Shortly after her daughter's birth, Dye became acquainted with SOFT and was grateful for the opportunity to meet with other families who understood her family's challenges and heartache.

With SOFT, "you know that you're not alone," she says. "We can be there for you. I love that because I know how much it helped me."

While Dye was unable to help with the SOFT tree that first year when Morganne was born, she has been involved in the projects ever since. It was while attending last year's festival, that Erin Hayes learned that the national organization had a Utah chapter.

"I was aware of SOFT, but didn't realize it was local," Hayes says. "I saw the tree and all the pictures of the children at [last year's festival]. It was quite amazing. It was a really good feeling."

For her part, Dye wants people to realize how special "these kids were to their family."

We want people "to know that we're there to help them if they go through the same thing," she says about the group's motivation to donate a tree to the festival each year. The tree is "not just to honor the memory [of these children], but to help others."

The Festival of Trees runs through Saturday, Dec. 2 at the South Towne Expo Center, 9575 S. State St. in Sandy, from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. Tickets are $4 for adults, $2.50 for seniors and children age 11 and under, and free for children under 2. Discount tickets are available at Zions Bank locations. For more information, go to www.festivaloftreesutah.com.