Savannah physician finds respite from a demanding career through her creative holiday decor
Written by MARGARET DANIEL
Photos courtesy DR. KEISHA REDDICK
Each year, Americans descend upon tree lots and big box stores in droves, taking home an estimated 50 million Christmas trees — a number that continues to grow as some shoppers deck the halls with multiple lighted firs, both real and fake, per home for extra holiday cheer.
Dr. Keisha Reddick is ahead of the curve. Considering her busy roles as the chair of obstetrics and gynecology, medical director for women’s services, and the soon-to-be vice chief of staff at Memorial Health University Medical Center, some may be surprised to learn her Savannah home is lit by at least eight brilliantly appointed trees.
From the beginning of October until Thanksgiving, the Morehouse School of Medicine- and Duke University-educated physician, wife and mother of three fills her evenings with the decoration of her 6-foot-plus masterpieces. Not to mention, each one is based on
a meticulously researched and rendered theme.
Inspired by her mother’s love for detail-oriented, seasonal decorating, Reddick began reinventing her holiday decor when her family relocated to Savannah in 2014. “I started putting up Christmas trees in medical school, and over the last seven years, I have gotten more and more creative with them,” Reddick says. “My first year, I wanted one big tree, but then I started thinking about having trees with specific themes.”
There is the sugar plum tree, with its rose gold boughs covered in soft pink, teal and purple balls and fairy ornaments. A black-and-red Georgia Bulldogs tree was retired last year in favor of the Bubble tree, its 500 clear balls giving the illusion of shimmering suds. New for the 2023 season are the Emerald City tree and the Renaissance fir — the latter based upon the silvery disco ball fashions worn by Reddick and her daughter, Gabrielle, to Beyoncé’s blockbuster Renaissance world tour this past summer.
“Last year, I decided to retire a traditional gold and white tree because I had the vision for a new Emerald City tree this year,” Reddick gushes of the glassy, green-covered tree inspired by “The Wiz” adaptation of “The Wizard of Oz.”
“I started planning months in advance so I could be organized about what things I need because I start putting up the trees well before Thanksgiving.”
With hordes of trees and ornaments, yards of ribbon and ample accessories, Reddick has commandeered her guest bedroom for hyper-organized holiday storage. “I store everything for each tree together. Each [one] has its own bin for ornaments and ribbons, and the same goes for [my] tablescapes,” she says. “When it’s time [to decorate], my husband and son bring everything downstairs. Then I decide which tree I will start with first.”
With two or three R&B or jazz ballads on loop — never Christmas music — Reddick gets to work punctuating her living spaces with flocked pink, green and black trees, outfitting them with their designated ornaments, carefully fluffing branches and weaving ribbons through the boughs before turning her attention to the main event: the family room’s 12-foot fir affectionately known as “Big Mama.”
“I do the trees in a certain order, and the largest one is done last. I think of it as artistic work, down to the ribbon,” Reddick says. “I dim the lights while I decorate so I can get a better idea of what it’s going to look like, and each tree gets a few new ornaments each year.”
With ample responsibility occupying her mind during the workday, Reddick welcomes the opportunity to let her creativity flow, sharing her works and inspiration one by one via Instagram to the adulation of her friends and family.
“This is mom time. I wear a lot of hats, but that’s why having other outlets is important,” Reddick says. “It’s important for others to see you can be a great physician and leader and mom and wife, but you can also be creative and have fun in your life, and truly enjoy the holiday season.”
DOCTOR’S ORDERS FOR TREE-TRIMMING
• Start small with whatever you have, and do what makes you feel good. Whether that’s a traditional tree, a small tree or an all-pink tree, if that is what gives you energy in this time of year or reminds you of someone special, then do it. There is nothing that has to be traditional about the holiday season. It is really about the energy you want to put out there.
• Keep perfectionism at bay. Competition is the worst thing you can have in your mind because it is a threat to yourself.
• Get the kids involved. Source smaller, 3- to 4-foot starter trees for their bedroom or playroom that they can decorate themselves with homemade crafts and school ornaments.
