NPS - National Park Service

12/04/2024 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 12/04/2024 13:16

President to light National Christmas Tree at The White House and President’s Park

Date:
December 4, 2024
Contact: NCR

WASHINGTON- President Joe Biden will help celebrate the 2024 holiday season by lighting the National Christmas Tree at this year's National Christmas Tree Lighting Ceremony. Vice President Kamala Harris and Second Gentleman Douglas Emhoff will also attend the lighting. The ceremony will take place on the Ellipse at The White House and President's Park on Dec. 5. The tree is a cut, 35-foot red spruce from the George Washington and Jefferson National Forests in Virginia, a gift from the USDA Forest Service.

The lighting ceremony will include remarks from Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland.

The iconic event, a partnership between the National Park Foundation (NPF) and National Park Service (NPS), will be broadcast on Friday, Dec. 20 (8 p.m. - 9 p.m., EST/PST) on the CBS Television Network.

First celebrated in 1923 by President Calvin Coolidge, the National Christmas Tree Lighting continues to inspire people everywhere to pause to enjoy cherished traditions and make memories with family and friends in national parks during the holiday season. Learn more about the history of the National Christmas Tree Lighting.

The public can visit the National Christmas Tree and smaller trees representing each U.S. state, territory, District of Columbia, and several Bureau of Indian Education and Department of Defense Education Activity schools from Dec. 7, 2024, through Jan. 1, 2025. Hours are 10 a.m. - 10 p.m. Sundays through Thursdays, and 10 a.m. - 11 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays. Lights turn on near sunset each evening. For more event information and updates, please visit thenationaltree.org and follow The White House and President's Park on Facebook, Instagram, or X.

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ABOUT THE NATIONAL PARK SERVICE

About the National Park Service: More than 20,000 National Park Service employees care for more than 430+ national parks and work with communities across the nation to help preserve local history and create close-to-home recreational opportunities. Learn more at nps.gov, and on Facebook, Instagram, X, and YouTube.

ABOUT THE NATIONAL PARK FOUNDATION

The National Park Foundation works to protect wildlife and park lands, preserve history and culture, educate and engage youth, and connect people everywhere to the wonder of parks. We do it in collaboration with the National Park Service, the park partner community, and with the generous support of donors, without whom our work would not be possible. Learn more at nationalparks.org.