LANSING, Mich. (Michigan News Source) – With 73 days left until Christmas, some people have already started their Christmas shopping and even though Halloween hasn’t arrived yet, some retail stores already have their Christmas displays set up. Also preparing for the holiday season is the Michigan Department of Technology, Management & Budget (DTMB) who have selected the official 2023 state Christmas tree.
The chosen tree is a 60-foot spruce that will be harvested from Onaway in Michigan’s Lower Peninsula. Onaway resident Vic Ruppert and his family have donated the tree in honor of his late wife Shirley Ruppert. The spruce will arrive in downtown Lansing to grace the Capitol lawn for the holiday season Saturday, Oct. 28. This is the first tree from Presque Isle County, and the 13th from Michigan’s Lower Peninsula since an official tree began being placed at the Capitol each holiday season in 1987.
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The tree will be harvested Thursday, Oct. 26, and transported to the Capitol with help from the Michigan Association of Timbermen, the Great Lakes Timber Professionals Association, and DTMB’s Christmas tree crew. Once at the Capitol, local Boy Scout troops will continue the tradition of untying the tree. The HI-Ball Company of Lansing will provide a crane and crew to hoist the spruce into place near the intersection of Capitol and East Michigan avenues.
Once in place, the City of Lansing’s forestry team will prepare the tree for the lighting scheme and decorations developed by the Michigan Capitol Commission and the Lansing Board of Water & Light. The entire journey culminates with a tree lighting ceremony Friday, Nov. 17, at the 39th Annual SilverBellsintheCity.org celebration. Rain or shine, dignitaries will flip the switch that turns on thousands of twinkling lights at approximately 7:30 p.m. As one of Michigan’s premiere holiday events, Silver Bells includes an electric light parade featuring more than 70 entries decked out with thousands of lights, high school marching bands, horse drawn carriages, and the arrival of Santa Claus; lighting of the state tree; community sing; and drone holiday light show. The event concludes with a fireworks display over the Capitol.
The tradition of choosing an official Christmas tree for the Capitol started in 1987 by Democratic Governor James Blanchard, who, according to Capitol historian Valerie R. Marvin, had visited NYC and liked the Christmas tree at Rockefeller Center. That was the year that Michigan was also celebrating its sesquicentennial (150th) birthday and the tree was a festive addition to a year of celebrating.
In order to sit on the lawn of the state’s Capitol, there is nominating criteria that includes rules for the tree and its harvesting: the tree needs to be a spruce or fir, at least 55 feet tall with a maximum crown (branches and leaves) of 24 feet and maximum trunk diameter of 30 inches. The tree also needs come from an area with easy access to a road, no interference from power lines and be free.
Over the years, there has been controversy over the chosen Christmas tree and how it’s decorated. In 2012, some didn’t like the red-and-green-striped motif and said it resembled an ugly holiday sweater. Matt White, assistant director of facility operations at the Capitol said that only a few people actually liked it.
After all of the work is done to install and decorate the tree, a bit of surveillance will also be needed in order to keep an eye on the tree to make sure strong winds and squirrels don’t create havoc. To do that, White says that the Capitol grounds staff keeps an eye on the tree throughout the holiday season.
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