Patti Romp of Vermont sells Christmas trees 24 hours a day on Montague Street in Brooklyn Heights, N.Y., with help from her 14-year-old son, Tim. When business gets slow, she keeps warm with a cup of tea. Mother and son stay in a camper trailer in front of a supermarket adjacent to their stand.(Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times)
Tim Romp, 14, loves to ride horses back home in Vermont, but at the family’s seasonal Christmas tree business in New York, he uses his roping skills to bundle up a tree for a customer. (Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times)
After carefully selecting their tree, Brad Skillman gets plenty of help carrying it home from daughters Emma, 4 (center), and Charlotte, 7. (Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times)
Joseph Shommer sells Christmas trees on Remsen Street in Brooklyn Heights, just around the corner from Patti Romp’s stand. (Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times)
Patti Romp’s 14-year-old son, Tim, heads back into their camper to get warm. The tree-selling pair are staying in the vehicle until Christmas, when they will pack up and go home to Vermont. (Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times)
