Last summer, at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, Lisa Suhay invited a royal fairy to move into a pink crepe myrtle tree outside her home.
She told a few children in her Larchmont neighborhood that Fairy Queen Lysandra, a red-haired creature with gold and green wings, would love to receive and answer their letters. That’s how the Fairy Tree was born.
A year later, many more fairies now live in the Fairy Tree Village, and they have responded to nearly 3,000 letters delivered, mailed or emailed from kids and adults worldwide. People have shared COVID-related challenges and universal life struggles — divorce, bullying, pet loss and much more — and gotten words of encouragement and advice in return.
The tree also has gained recognition as a piece of living history by the Library of Congress, which will include it in its Historic American Landscapes Survey, and Old Dominion University Libraries, which plans to add scanned letters to a COVID-19 archive.
“This has been a place where hope is restored on a daily basis,” says Suhay, a journalist, children’s book author and mother of five. “I don’t think it will ever stop. Once you’ve opened the door to magic, you don’t try to close it.”
The tree at the corner of Longwood Road and Woodbury Avenue is surrounded by colorful tiny houses and figurines, with two mailboxes for letter drop-offs and pickups. Norfolk officials have issued a permit to allow the village to grow around the city-owned tree.
Neighbors, friends and strangers have donated pens, paper, envelopes and money; one man built a wooden table and bench for writing sessions.
Between 20 and 50 letters have arrived daily, Suhay reports. She has met both regular visitors and vacationers who pull up even in rain and snow. Some people choose to write to a particular fairy, each with a distinct character, voice, area of expertise, handwriting and envelope color.
At times, the fairies work with local librarians, mental health counselors and business owners to help people with everything from book recommendations to community resources for financial, emotional and social problems.
The Fairy Godmother sent one girl a pack of clear face masks for her 5-year-old brother, who is hearing impaired and couldn’t read lips behind regular masks. Another girl got a charm necklace to wear whenever she felt anxious about online schoolwork.
Lots of Christmas wishes came true, including a fishing trip organized by Bass Pro Shops for a struggling single mom and her daughter. So have requested Tooth Fairy visits.
The project will be a unique resource for researchers and historians in the future, predicts LaraAnn Canner, a curator with ODU Libraries. ODU is archiving stories of highs, lows and daily life amidst the pandemic.
“The voices of children often are not well-documented in difficult eras,” Canner says. “It may not feel this way, but we are living history. Years from now, historians will want to understand how we felt, from our fears to our blessings.”
Maureen Howard of Virginia Beach heard about the tree at work and brought her 5-year-old son, Junior, who is on the autism spectrum and had been mostly non-verbal. Junior decided to be a pen pal with a fairy named Jinx, who sent back a letter the next day.
“It has changed this child,” Howard says. “He just fell in love with all of it, and somehow, he started interacting more with everyone. We go there at least once a week, and every single time, I cry.”
Howard and her two older children, Aire, 16, and Jamarkus, 10, also have sent letters. Howard’s note about feeling guilty that she spent too much parenting energy on Junior led to a breakthrough conversation with Aire.
“It sounds crazy, but that tree has brought our entire family closer,” she says. “We all have things on our minds, and just to get some encouraging words is a blessing.”
Whitney Davidson of Norfolk, a Navy mom who lives near Suhay, has a bowl filled with 50-plus letters that fairies have sent her daughter Teagan, 2, since last summer.
“Teagan has asked them questions like how she can make mom feel better when she’s sad, or how she can be less nervous starting school,” Davidson says. “She draws pictures, too. It’s just always something for her to look forward to.”
Suhay is proud that an idea rooted in pandemic pain has turned into source of joy. She expects the tree will keep evolving as more fairies and decorations arrive; one wish is to add a huge castle where children could play.
“It’s about celebrating life and supporting each other,” she says. “That’s always magical.”
Alison Johnson, ajohnsondp@yahoo.com
