Whitehouse Christmas Tree: 2000

Pennsylvania Douglas-Fir Will Be The Official White House Christmas Tree

Paul & Sharon Shealer, along with their children Briana and Paul, will present an 18 ½ foot tall Douglas-fir Christmas Tree to First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton on November 29, 2000. The tree was grown on the Shealer’s farm, Evergreen Acres Tree Farm, near Auburn, Pennsylvania and will be displayed in the Blue Room of The White House throughout the holiday season.

The Shealers won the honor of presenting a Christmas Tree to the White House by winning the National Christmas Tree Association’s Christmas Tree contest in Rochester, New York this summer. To be eligible to enter that contest, the Shealers first won the Pennsylvania Christmas Tree Association contest earlier this year. The tree was selected on October 23 by three members of The White House staff: Chief Usher Gary Walters; Executive Groundskeeper Irv Williams; and National Park Services Forester Mike Lawn. The tree that they selected is one that Paul has been hoping to send to The White House for a number of years. He has jokingly referred to it as "The White House Tree" for years.

In addition to the Official White House Christmas Tree that the Shealers will present to Mrs. Clinton, there will be approximately 40 other Real Christmas Trees in the White House this year. The decorating theme for The White House is a closely held secret until the doors open for viewing on December 3.

Evergreen Acres Tree Farm is a family business, started in 1945 by Paul’s father. They have 55-60 acres in production, with about 55,000 to 60,000 trees in the field. They produce: Douglas-fir, Fraser fir, Canaan fir, Colorado blue spruce, Concolor fir, Scotch pine, white pine and Norway spruce, but mostly Douglas and Fraser fir. They have a small retail operation on their farm, but sell most of their trees to wholesale customers. They do all of the work themselves, and both Paul and Sharon work outside the home. Paul is an Ag extension agent for PA State University and Sharon is a career counselor at a vo-tech school.

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