Wisconsin tree farm provides 2016 White House Christmas tree

WASHINGTON, DC -- The White House tradition of beautiful and stunning holiday decorations is on display for the 2016 holiday season. The centerpiece of that tradition, the annual White House Blue Room Christmas Tree, was delivered to the White House Nov. 25 via horse-drawn wagon and presented by Dave and Mary Vander Velden, owners of Whispering Pines Tree Farm in Octonto, Wis.

The tree, a 19 foot Douglas Fir grown in Pennsylvania, was presented to First Lady Michelle Obama by the Vander Veldens, who are the 2016 National Christmas Tree Association Grand Champion winners of the national tree contest. The NCTA has presented the White House with the Annual White House Christmas Tree since 1966. The Grand Champion Grower wins the privilege of presenting a tree to the White House.

“It’s a very big honor. In order to present a tree (to the White House), you have to win the national championship,” Dave Vander Velden said. “It’s like winning the Super Bowl or a gold medal at the Olympics. It doesn’t get better than that.”

A tree from Whispering Pines Tree Farm was handpicked by Angella Reid, White House Chief Usher, along with White House Superintendent of Grounds Dale Haney, Olivia O'Neil with the White House Visitors Office and Jim Adams with the National Park Service. This 19 foot Balsam fir will be displayed in the Garden Room.

Photo: David Vander Velden of Whispering Pines Tree Farm, courtesy National Christmas Tree Association