President Biden will participate in the annual Christmas tree lighting ceremony at the Ellipse on Thursday, but it will be the last time he will take part in the annual tradition before leaving the White House next year.
Biden returned to the White House early Thursday after an extended stay. Beginning of the week in Angola. Before leaving, he sparked a firestorm with the following message: massive pardon for his sonHunter was convicted on federal drug and gun charges and also pleaded guilty to tax charges. Asked about a pardon earlier this week, the first lady, who attended Hunter Biden’s trial every day in Delaware, said: “Of course I support pardoning my son.”
This year’s Christmas tree is a 35-foot-tall red spruce from the George Washington National Forest and Jefferson National Forest in Virginia. The collection of 58 small trees is decorated with ornaments designed by students from every state and territory.
The 102nd Annual Tree Lighting Ceremony will be hosted by Mickey Guyton and will feature performances by Adam Blackstone, Stephen Sanchez, James Taylor and Trisha Yearwood. Viewers can watch the entire ceremony on December 20th on CBS.
2024 White House Holiday Decorations
Official White House Photo: Erin Scott
The tree lighting is the final part of the White House’s holiday transformation, and this year’s theme is “A Season of Peace and Light.”
First lady Jill Biden spoke Monday with the volunteers who brought the winter wonderland to life and unveiled Christmas decorations in the East Room.
“As we enter our final holiday season here at the White House, we are guided by our sacred values of faith, family, service to our country, kindness to all our neighbors, and the strength of community,” she said. said. Said.
More than 300 volunteers from across the U.S. will need approximately 9,810 feet of ribbon, 28,125 ornaments, and 2,200 paper pigeons to decorate the halls of the White House.
Official White House Photo: Erin Scott
The White House expects to welcome more than 100,000 visitors during the holiday season. The first lady welcomed the families of National Guard members Tuesday who were among the first to view the decorations. Upon arrival, visitors will see a Christmas tree dedicated to the Gold Star Family with six stacked stars representing all six branches of the military. Descending the east colonnade, guests will be surrounded by bells that “symbolize the gentle sounds of the holiday season.” In the east room, two large Christmas trees guard the front door, and a reflective canopy next to a chandelier sparkles like falling snow.
According to the White House, the first Christmas tree in the White House was in 1889 during President Benjamin Harrison’s administration. It was a much smaller event, with only a Christmas tree decorated with candles from President Harrison’s grandchildren in the Oval Room on the second floor.
The annual Gingerbread White House is made from 25 sheets of gingerbread dough, 10 sheets of sugar cookie dough, 65 pounds of pastiage, 45 pounds of chocolate, 50 pounds of royal icing, and 10 pounds of gum paste in the shape of 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. I finished it. .
Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images
Volunteers bring the decorations to life
Alisa Cooper de Uribe, a first-grade bilingual teacher at New Mexico International School in Albuquerque and the 2021 New Mexico Teacher of the Year, raised thousands of pigeons. He is one of the volunteers we gathered. She traveled to Washington, D.C. with her family as part of the White House decoration team.
“It was a sisterhood, a brotherhood. It was a very sociable atmosphere,” Cooper de Uribe told CBS News. “And one of the things that really impressed me was how many people who had never known each other before came together and how well these people worked together. .”
Holiday volunteers are teachers, military families, nurses, and small business owners from around the country who apply before being selected for decoration duties. The day after Thanksgiving, volunteers arrived bright and early at the White House to begin a full day of glitter and wreathing before the first lady showed off all her work. The first lady’s office sent a special invitation to Ms. de Uribe and other State Teacher of the Year recipients to participate in the holiday volunteer tradition. Some volunteers have formed text chains and Facebook groups, hoping to stay in touch long after the decorations are removed.
Holiday decoration centerpiece
The centerpiece of the holiday decorations inside the Blue Room is an 18 1/2-foot Fraser Fir that came from the Cartner family of Cartner’s Christmas Tree Farm in North Carolina. That tree is one of the survivors Thousands of others were devastated when Hurricane Helen hit the Blue Ridge Mountains. The owner named the car “Tremendous” in honor of the resilience of North Carolina communities affected by Hurricane Helen.
The Christmas tree in the state cafeteria is decorated with self-portraits of de Uribe’s students, including four of her first-graders.
“It’s an opportunity for students to see themselves reflected in the White House and in this season, to see it as their place and a portrait of their individual and unique selves and their culture. It was also an opportunity for me to shine through the competition,” said de Uribe. Said.
