It’s the 107th City of Chicago Christmas tree to light up Millennium Park.
The Millenium Park Christmas tree is no doubt Chicago’s “official” Christmas tree. Every year the lights are switched on during a jubilant annual ceremony that marks the start of the festive season. From then on the great tree shines brightly near the intersection of Michigan Avenue and Washington Street filling onlookers with joy and festive cheer.
This year, given the events of 2020 and COVID-19 health and safety concerns things will be slightly different. Instead of the usual in-person public illumination ceremony, Chicagoans and visitors are invited to attend a NEW virtual ceremony taking place on Thursday, November 19 at 6:30 pm. The virtual ceremony will be shown live on Chicago DCASE’s Youtube channel but will then be archived so anybody can view it whenever busy holiday schedules allow!
The ceremony, titled, “Millennium Park at Home: Chicago Holidays” will feature holiday greetings from Mayor Lori Lightfoot and First Lady Amy Eshleman as well as performances from the Chicago Children’s Choir and the Sones de México Ensemble. While the lights won’t be switched on with a public ceremony, Chicagoans and visitors alike can swing by Millennium Park any time they please from November 20 through January 7 to see the tree in-person in all its glory.
Last month The City of Chicago announced it was accepting nominations for the 107th Christmas tree. A post on Millennium Park’s Instagram page stated that the nominations must preferably be either a Norway Spruce or Fir Tree, 45 feet or taller, and located less than 50 miles from Chicago’s Loop. Earlier this week a 45-foot Blue Spruce was chosen and donated by the family of Catherine Townsend of Chicago’s Morgan Park neighborhood. More information can be found at www.MillenniumPark.org.