Capitol Christmas Tree plucked from Washington

NEWPORT -- A tree from Washington’s Colville National Forest will decorate the White House this Christmas season.

Government officials selected the 88-foot tall Engelmann spruce in June as the Capitol Christmas Tree.

The tree will be cut down on Friday and trucked to Newport, where it will be wrapped for its 24-day tour across the nation.

The spruce will make ten stops here in Washington, including trips to Everett and Olympia on Nov. 8.

People from across the state have provided a total of 5,000 handmade ornaments that will decorate the tree once it arrives at the White House.

House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, and a lucky student from Washington, will help light the tree during a ceremony on the West Lawn of the White House on Nov. 25.

This is the second time a tree from Washington has been selected for the honor. In 2006, a tree from the Olympic National Forest was chosen as the Capitol Christmas Tree.