Valerie Mills heard chainsaws around 9 a.m. on Friday and realized the trees across from the home she has lived in for 27 years were coming down.
Surprised to see the 60-year-old trees being removed, she quickly made a sign and ran outside to protest.
The sign reads 'stop the death of the evergreens for our children.'
Mills stood outside in the cold from 10 a.m. until the afternoon, watching the trees fall.
"I couldn't sit by and do nothing," she said.
The trees, which are on the St. James Catholic Church property, are being taken down in order to build a new church.
Douglas Fox, a member of the parish, said the church had previously sent out notices to the community with little response. He said he understands that the neighbours who are upset have legitimate concerns. And he's also sad to see the trees go.
"But we want to build a church. In order to do that, we have to take trees down."
Fox said the church has been waiting 20 years to build a new facility, and will do a good job of landscaping the area once the structure is up. A city permit to cut the evergreens was obtained, he said.
Mills maintains she never received a notice about the trees or she would have been "wide awake" to the issue.
She understands the needs of the church, but wishes that trees could be incorporated into building plans.
Though reaction to the loss of trees in her neighbourhood has been small, Mills felt the need to make her point.
"There used to be many trees like this in Abbotsford. Now there are less and less."