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With a push of a button, Bush lit the 42-foot Colorado blue spruce decorated with 25,000 colored lights, illuminating the Ellipse and drawing cheers from the crowd of thousands.
It was the sixth lighting for the president and the 83rd for the White House.
The tree-lighting ceremony is the beginning of the three-week Pageant of Peace in which the Ellipse is visited by hundreds of thousands of visitors.
Before the lighting Thursday, as sun descended behind the Potomac River and the temperatures dropped below 40 degrees, national acts entertained the audience with holiday music. Performing were theater and musical legend Eartha Kitt, Olympic gymnast and Broadway’s “Peter Pan” Cathy Rigby, recording star B.J. Thomas, and Tony-nominated actor Brad Oscar who appeared as Santa Claus. They were backed up by the United States Army Band and the Singing Angels Choir, a youth group from Cleveland.
Coinciding with the ceremony was the other holiday tradition: the annual national Christmas tree-lighting traffic jam. Downtown D.C.’s homebound commuters were detoured around the White House and Ellipse.



Comments from Examiner Readers
8:20 AM MST on Thu., Sep. 11, 2008 re: "Man brings North Pole to Parkton"
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Examiner Reader said:
this guy is so cool. i like the deication that he displays to the holiday. I have known chuck for some time,(not to mention he is my brother). he has always shown dedication to the xmas holiday, as i think that it our whole families favorite time of the year,because it brings all of us together. THANKS CHUCK!!
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