U.S. Capitol Christmas Tree’s stop in Sonora brings community together
Tuolumne County residents and visitors enjoyed an early dose of Christmas cheer on Wednesday as “The People’s Tree” rolled through Sonora during its 3,500-mile trip to the west lawn of the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., where it will be displayed throughout the holiday season for hundreds of thousands to see.
People donning Santa hats and other Christmas garb descended upon the Mother Lode Fairgrounds in Sonora from 5 to 7 p.m. to catch a glimpse of “Sugar Bear,” an 84-foot white fir cut from the Six Rivers National Forest north of Eureka that was already decorated inside an enclosed trailer.
“The Capitol tree is a huge thing and to have it make a stop here is special,” said County Supervisor David Goldem
berg, who was among several elected officials at the fairgrounds. “It provides a bit of release from the negative things that are going on.”
The U.S. Capitol Christmas Tree is an annual tradition dating back to 1964, with a different national forest selected each year to provide one.
Sonora last enjoyed a visit from the U.S. Capitol Christmas Tree in 2011, when the Stanislaus National Forest was selected to provide it that year.
“Sugar Bear” was in Sacramento earlier in the day before arriving in Sonora about 4:30 p.m., with hundreds of people lining the streets ringing bells purchased by the Sonora Chamber of Commerce for the event.
The Tuolumne County Sheriff’s Posse, Sonora Fire Department, Sonora Police Department, and Tuolumne County Sheriff’s Office were among those escorting the tree as it made its way north on South Washington Street from Highway 108 before turning left onto Stockton Road.
“We had a nice turnout in Sacramento, but nothing like this,” Samantha Reho, a spokesperson for the U.S. Capitol Christmas Tree program, said while at the fairgrounds.
Many attendees expressed similar sentiments to Goldemberg about the tree
serving as a way for the community to set aside the strife gripping the entire nation over the two years.
Families with young children said it was nice to have such an event they could all enjoy together.
“They wanted to ring the bells and see the Sheriff’s Posse,” Rebecca Bell, of Sonora, said of her two
children Rachel, 8, and Logan, 6.
The event was coordinated by County Supervisor Kathleen Haff, who is the county’s liaison to the Rural County Representatives of California, a group the U.S. Forest Service worked with to find communities willing to host the tree on its way to the nation’s capital.
Haff said she volunteered to be a coordinator for an event in Tuolumne County, and that’s how Sonora became one of 27 stops the tree will make between California and Washington, D.C. (See online video for an interview with Haff.)
There was also a ceremony at the fairgrounds after the tree’s arrival that included a blessing by representatives from both the Tuolumne Band of Me-wuk Indians and Chicken Ranch Rancheria of Me-wuk Indians of California, along with speeches by Haff, U.S. Capitol Christmas Tree Facilitator Nancy Henderson, Sonora Mayor Matt Hawkins, and County Supervisor Ryan Campbell, who serves as board chairman.