by Caroline Gabsewics
Staff Writer
It sure takes a lot to make a 50-foot evergreen shine.
Thousands of sparkling lights, hundreds of ornaments and one star on top, to be exact, will turn a Norwegian spruce from Sugar Mountain, N.C., into the Landing’s annual Christmas tree.
Now that the tree is standing and secure, a team of four decorators will trim it with more than 40,000 lights. Landing staff will then finish the hand-picked tree with ornaments, bows and the star. This will be the 19th year the Landing has decorated a Christmas tree and the tree lighting ceremony will be at 7:30 p.m. Nov. 25 in the courtyard. Fireworks over the St. Johns River will immediately follow the lighting of the tree.
“ ‘Silent Night’ will be sung, then there will be a countdown from 10 to one, the tree will be lit and the fireworks start right after that,” said Rachel Kaltenbach, director of public relations for the Landing.
She said that 7,000-10,000 people come out for the tree lighting ceremony each year.
“It’s a family crowd and everyone gets into it,” said Kaltenbach. “Everyone has candles that they light, it is really neat, and it has been a tradition for years and years.”
Students from Douglas Anderson School of the Arts will perform several holiday classics throughout the evening. The tree will be lit by six children from the IM Sulzbacher Center for the Homeless.
“We do that every year and the kids really like it,” said Kaltenbach. “These children were chosen because they really excelled in school this year.”