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This is a story about the long, happy life of a soon-to-be well-traveled Gumbo Limbo tree.

My parents, Fred and Claudia Curle, planted the tree at their Marco Island home on Grapewood Court 31 years ago.

“A handy man gave us a small gumbo limbo,” Mom told me. “It was just a branch, a stick, and we stuck it into the ground, having no idea how huge it would become.”

The giant gumbo limbo now is about to be moved by land and sea, slowly and carefully, to the Naples Botanical Gardens. Why?

The current owners of the Grapewood property, Marilyn and John Wrucke, have torn down the old house to rebuild on the same home site.

The gumbo limbo had to go to make room for the Wrucke’s new home. Marilyn was unhappy about that.

“It would be such a shame to lose such a beautiful tree,” she lamented.

Hearing that, I suggested the Wruckes check with a company that moves big trees, O’Donnell Landscapes of Estero.

From that contact, arrangements were made for the Naples Botanical Gardens to acquire the tree. Soon this major tree-moving project began to take shape.

The tree probably weighs from 40,000 to 60,000 pounds. It looks like it’s 70 or 75 years old, because it benefited from regular irrigation and fertilization of the yard at the house.

“I don’t think O’Donnell has ever moved a Gumbo like this, this large,” says company executive Judy Austin.

Moving large trees always involves a challenge when it comes to power lines and other potential obstacles.

This one’s no different.

The voyage is scheduled for next Monday.

Watchful Islanders that afternoon may see the tree moving slowly under the Jolley Bridge. The water part of the trip is about 10 nautical miles. Then the tree will be offloaded at a place made available by Collier Enterprises, developers of Hamilton Harbor.

“It looks like a go,” says Brian Holley, executive director of the Botanical Gardens. “Everyone wants to see this happen. They just like the whole idea of saving this tree. I can’t tell you how excited I am

about this.”

Holley says one of the challenges in building a new botanical garden is finding big, established trees and plants.

“We have a spot where visitors enter the gardens that calls for a great big gumbo-limbo, a shade tree.

I saw the photos of this tree and thought, wow, this is exactly what I’ve been dreaming of for that spot.”

Gumbo limbo trees are popular here. They are tough and drought tolerant. Their name conjures up tropical breezes, island music and fun.

Their appearance is unique. Some say their reddish blond bark, with a papery texture, reminds us of Florida tourists; red and peeling.

Now this one-time little stick of a tree, planted in hope and optimism, is getting the royal treatment, going from its home with the Curles and most recently the Wruckes, to the Botanical Garden, where it also will be among friends.

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Chris is a former news anchor for CNN and for ABC TV stations in Atlanta, Houston and Washington, DC. Email: chris@chriscurle.com.