Washington (AP) President Joe Biden and his wife, Jill, are spending their last holiday season at the White House, where the executive residence is decked out in the theme of “A Season of Peace and Light.”
At a White House event on Monday, the first lady will reveal the decorations and provide a Christmas greeting.
Over the course of the last week, several hundred volunteers decorated the White House’s public areas with over 28,000 ornaments, over 2,200 doves, approximately 10,000 feet of ribbon, and about 165,000 lights on garlands, wreaths, and other decorations.
The mansion also has 83 Christmas trees, including the official tree in the Blue Room, a tall North Carolina Fraser fir that was fixed to the ceiling after the chandelier was taken down.
In a commemorative holiday guidebook that will be distributed to all guests, the Bidens wrote: “As we celebrate our last holiday season here in the White House, we are guided by the values we hold sacred: faith, family, service to our country, kindness towards our neighbors, and the power of community and connection.”
This month, the White House anticipates 100,000 visitors.
A variety of bells, including brass-colored bells hanging from the ceiling and sleigh bells along the archways, will surround guests as they enter the White House beneath a revolving starlight. These bells will represent the sounds of the holidays as they proceed down the East Colonnade hallway.
The East Room’s windows and ceiling are covered with a reflecting canopy upstairs to simulate a serene snowfall. Two enormous Christmas trees in the room have silhouettes of individuals holding hands on their bases.
In the Red Room, paper doves convey messages of peace, while in the Green Room, light streams through prisms and ornaments made of colorful glass. In the Cross Hall, doves are also hung from the ceiling.
The names of all the states, territories, and the District of Columbia are displayed around the decorations of the Blue Room tree in a bright carousel.
The gingerbread White House, which this year features a scenario of people ice skating on the South Lawn, is illuminated by a starburst in the State Dining Room.
25 sheets of gingerbread dough, 10 sheets of sugar cookie dough, 65 pounds (29.48 kilograms) of pastillage, a sugar paste, 45 pounds (20.41 kilograms) of chocolate, 50 pounds (22.68 kilograms) of royal icing, and 10 pounds (4.54 kilograms) of gum paste were used to make the sugary treat, which is only meant to be displayed and never eaten.
The first lady invited National Guard families to be the first members of the public to see the Christmas décor as part of Jill Biden’s White House project, Joining Forces, which supports military families. Beau, the late son of the Bidens, was a member of the Delaware Army National Guard.
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