Obama lights National Christmas Tree, calls for brotherhood

More than 300 military families received Christmas trees at Ft.

Actor Reese Witherspoon, emcee of the holiday event, said “our hearts go out to all the families who’ve endured recent tragedies”.

Last night on Capitol Hill, the annual Christmas Tree Lighting Ceremony was held to illuminate a 90-year-old Lutz Spruce standing 74 feet tall that was harvested from the Chugach National Forest located in south-central Alaska. Miss Piggy will make a special appearance and do a reading with First Lady Michelle Obama.

“Happy holidays to Reese and everyone here tonight and everyone watching at home”, the president said before leading a countdown to the lighting.

Several musical acts, such as Fall Out Boy, Crosby, Stills & Nash, and jazz musician Trombone Shorty – accompanied by the U.S. Coast Guard Band – performed Christmas favorites like “Silent Night”, “O Holy Night”, and “Jingle Bells”.

The National Park Service says the tradition of lighting a national tree was started by President Calvin Coolidge in 1923. Launched in March 2015, Find Your Park/Encuentra Tu Parque is a public awareness and education movement to inspire people from all backgrounds to connect with, celebrate, and support America’s national parks and community-based programs.