On Monday, the Pennsylvania State Capitol welcomed the public in for the first in-person Capitol Tree Lighting Ceremony since the pandemic began.
There was a lot of excitement in the Main Rotunda, as Gov. Tom Wolf and First Lady Frances Wolf turned on the holiday lights decorating the 20-foot-tall Douglas Fir from Crystal Spring Tree Farm in Carbon County.
There’s over 900 LED lights on the tree, according to state officials, and more than 700 handcrafted ornaments from pre-K children and members of senior action centers across Pennsylvania.
This was Gov. Wolf’s final Tree Lighting Ceremony in office. He emphasized, while Pennsylvanians come from diverse religious traditions, we come together in the same way during the holiday season.
“Each year, this ceremony reminds me of the common bonds we share across humanity during this holiday season,” Gov. Wolf said. “Therefore, let us celebrate and strengthen those bonds by reaching out to others in need by sharing what we have with others and by extending our kindness beyond our friends and families to strangers and acquaintances we know to be different from us.”
The Rotunda tree will be lit up daily from 8 in the morning to 8 at night. Another tree, outside on the Capitol steps, will be on daily from 5 p.m. to midnight. Both will remain up through Jan. 6.