US EditionRockefeller Christmas Tree Is Harvested From Upstate New York and Begins Trek to Manhattan
The 75-foot, 11-ton Norway spruce from a family property will be decorated with over 50,000 LED lights and a Swarovski star before being milled into lumber for Habitat for Humanity.
- On Saturday, the Russ family of East Greenbush, New York delivered a 75-foot Norway spruce to 30 Rockefeller Plaza in Midtown Manhattan.
- After visiting Rockefeller Center with her son, Judy Russ submitted and donated a tree from the Russ family property in East Greenbush, New York, where it stood for over 60 years to honor her late husband Dan, who died at the age of 32.
- Cut down by chainsaw and loaded onto a flatbed truck, the spruce made a roughly 150-mile journey before crews hoisted the 11-ton tree from a 100-foot-long trailer and the donors performed the sledgehammer tradition.
- It will be wrapped in 50,000 lights and about five miles of wire, crowned with a 9-foot, 900-pound Swarovski star covered in 3 million crystals, and lit Dec. 3 on NBC and Peacock.
- The selection continues a decades-old Rockefeller Center tradition, with head gardener Erik Pauze choosing the tree after a tip from a former supervisor, marking New York City's holiday season.
109 Articles
109 Articles
Widow Donates 75-Foot Family Tree to Rockefeller Center in Touching Tribute to Late Husband
A widow from New York has fulfilled her late husband's dream by donating their family's towering Norway Spruce to become the 2025 Rockefeller Center Christmas tree, in a tribute that has touched hearts across America. Judy Russ watched as the 75-foot tree that had stood on her East Greenbush property for nearly eight decades was carefully lowered onto a flatbed lorry on 6 November. The moment was made even more poignant when a rare bald eagle so…
NBC Chicago
NBC LA'Like he's with us again': The 2025 Rockefeller Center Christmas tree honors donor's late husband
Mornings often began with Dan Russ birdwatching on his tree-lined property. On cold days, he’d look through the kitchen window in the house his family owned for generations. On warm days, he’d watch from the porch overlooking a yard shaded by trees his ancestors planted. He’d see cardinals, sparrows and blue jays soar across the yard, often flying past a 75-foot Norway Spruce that stood alongside the home’s garage. The tree stretched so far into…
The imposing 23-meter Norwegian fir, donated by a family in the north of the state, will be illuminated on December 3 with more than 50,000 LED lights and a Swarovski star, in a tradition dating back to 1931.
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