{"id":20421,"date":"2017-11-28T18:26:55","date_gmt":"2017-11-29T01:26:55","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/lastbestnews.com\/site\/?p=20421"},"modified":"2017-11-28T18:26:55","modified_gmt":"2017-11-29T01:26:55","slug":"montanas-capitol-christmas-tree-arrives-in-d-c","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/2017\/11\/montanas-capitol-christmas-tree-arrives-in-d-c\/","title":{"rendered":"Montana&#8217;s Capitol Christmas Tree arrives in D.C."},"content":{"rendered":"\n\t\t\t<div id=\"slides-20421\" class=\"navis-slideshow\">\n\t\t\t<p class=\"slide-nav\">\n\n\t\t\t<a href=\"#\" class=\"prev\"><\/a>\n\t\t\t<a href=\"#\" class=\"next\"><\/a>\n\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\n\t\t\t<div class=\"slides_container\"><div id=\"20421-slide1\"><a href=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/Tree-Capitol.jpg\" target=\"_blank\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/Tree-Capitol-771x515.jpg\" \/><\/a><h6> <a href=\"#\" class=\"slide-permalink\">permalink<\/a><\/h6><p>Montana's Capitol Christmas Tree was delivered to the Capitol lawn in Washington, D.C., on Monday.<\/p><\/div><div id=\"20421-slide2\"><a href=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/Tree-harvest-1.jpg\" target=\"_blank\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/Tree-harvest-1-771x578.jpg\" \/><\/a><h6> <a href=\"#\" class=\"slide-permalink\">permalink<\/a><\/h6><p>The tree was harvested earlier this month from the Kootenai National Forest near Yaak.<\/p><\/div><div id=\"20421-slide3\" data-src=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/Tree-truck-load-771x578.jpg*771*578\" data-href=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/Tree-truck-load.jpg\" \/><h6> <a href=\"#\" class=\"slide-permalink\">permalink<\/a><\/h6><p>A truck from Whitewood Transportation in Plains awaits its cargo near Yaak.<\/p><\/div><div id=\"20421-slide4\" data-src=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/Singers-771x566.jpg*771*566\" data-href=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/Singers.jpg\" \/><h6> <a href=\"#\" class=\"slide-permalink\">permalink<\/a><\/h6><p> Schoolchildren from Yaak sang \u201cThis Land is Your Land\u201d during the tree-cutting ceremony.<\/p><\/div><div id=\"20421-slide5\" data-src=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/forest-tree-771x515.jpg*771*515\" data-href=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/forest-tree.jpg\" \/><h6>U.S. Forest Service <a href=\"#\" class=\"slide-permalink\">permalink<\/a><\/h6><p>Trucker Larry Spiekermeier pulled into the nation\u2019s capital a little after 4 a.m. Monday, delivering his 79-foot-tall cargo. <\/p><\/div><div id=\"20421-slide6\" data-src=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/Tree-truckarrive-771x515.jpg*771*515\" data-href=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/Tree-truckarrive.jpg\" \/><h6> <a href=\"#\" class=\"slide-permalink\">permalink<\/a><\/h6><p>Arrival of Capitol Christmas Tree.<\/p><\/div><div id=\"20421-slide7\" data-src=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/Tree-truck-771x515.jpg*771*515\" data-href=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/Tree-truck.jpg\" \/><h6> <a href=\"#\" class=\"slide-permalink\">permalink<\/a><\/h6><p>Here's a closer look at the truck, driven by Larry Spiekermeier, that made the 3,500-mile trip to the nation's capital.<\/p><\/div><div id=\"20421-slide8\" data-src=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/Tree-hoist-771x515.jpg*771*515\" data-href=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/Tree-hoist.jpg\" \/><h6> <a href=\"#\" class=\"slide-permalink\">permalink<\/a><\/h6><p>Workers prepare to hoist the tree from the truck trailer.<\/p><\/div><div id=\"20421-slide9\" data-src=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/Tree-2-771x515.jpg*771*515\" data-href=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/Tree-2.jpg\" \/><h6> <a href=\"#\" class=\"slide-permalink\">permalink<\/a><\/h6><p>Another view of the unloading process.<\/p><\/div><div id=\"20421-slide10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/Tester-tree.jpg\" target=\"_blank\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/Tester-tree-771x515.jpg\" \/><\/a><h6> <a href=\"#\" class=\"slide-permalink\">permalink<\/a><\/h6><p>On Oct. 31, Bozeman sixth-grader Ridley Brandmayr, leaning on the chair, and members of his family, met with Sen. Jon Tester in his Capitol office. Ridley will help Tester light the tree next week.<\/p><\/div><\/div><\/div><script>jQuery( document ).ready( function() { loadSlideshow( 20421, 'https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/2017\/11\/montanas-capitol-christmas-tree-arrives-in-d-c\/', 10 ) } );<\/script>\n<p>The U.S. Capitol Christmas Tree, cut down in the northwest corner of Montana, was delivered to the West Lawn of the Capitol in Washington, D.C., on Monday.<\/p>\n<p>On Wednesday, Dec. 6, Bozeman sixth-grader Ridley Brandmayr will help Sen. Jon Tester, as the senior member of Montana&#8217;s congressional delegation, light the tree in an official ceremony.<!--more--><\/p>\n<p>Tester&#8217;s office sent out a press release on the event, complete with lots of photos of the tree-cutting ceremony at the Three Rivers Ranger District of the Kootenai National Forest near Yaak, and photos of the delivery of the 79-foot Engelmann spruce in Washington, D.C., on Monday.<\/p>\n<p>The press release also included a <a href=\"https:\/\/sentester.app.box.com\/s\/ybgyeh2rvwlxkrtgv7qxuz3a2dw77kev\">video of Tester welcoming the tree<\/a> to Washington. In the video, Tester said the truck was driven by a man whose first name was Larry and whose last name was so long he was afraid he&#8217;d screw it up if he tried to pronounce it. Tester said he met the driver in Great Falls and he was &#8220;one heck of a good guy.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>On the <a href=\"http:\/\/www.capitolchristmastree.com\/\">Kootenai National Forest website<\/a> devoted to the Capitol tree, the truck driver was identified as Larry Spiekermeier, with Whitewood Transport in Plains, Mont.\u00a0Pete Tallmadge, a logger from Troy, <a href=\"http:\/\/missoulian.com\/news\/local\/longtime-troy-logging-family-puts-its-mark-on-capitol-christmas\/article_1e8749d3-0cf9-5c30-aae2-b2540fbe1098.html\">was chosen<\/a> to fell the tree.<\/p>\n<p>Spiekermeier, a two-time Montana Motor Carriers &#8220;driver of the year,&#8221; shepherded the towering spruce tree on a 3,500-mile journey from northwest Montana to Washington. The press release said\u00a0Spiekermeier, who has made deliveries to every state but Hawaii, will celebrate 50 years on the road next year.<\/p>\n<p>After he delivered the tree to Andrews Air Force Base in Maryland, it was promptly &#8220;unwrapped&#8221; and delivered to the Capitol grounds on Monday. The journey included <a href=\"http:\/\/www.capitolchristmastree.com\/The-Peoples-Tree\/tour\">stops in 13 cities<\/a> across Montana.<\/p>\n<p>Tester <a href=\"https:\/\/www.tester.senate.gov\/tree\/\">announced early last year<\/a> that he had chosen\u00a0Ridley Brandmayr of Bozeman to help him light the tree.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;Ridley has shown incredible strength, determination, perseverance, and passion,&#8221; Tester said at the time.\u00a0&#8220;Ridley will represent Montana well and I look forward to celebrating this Christmas season with the Brandmayr family and every Montanan.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Earlier last year, Ridley lost all the fingers on his right hand in an accident, but had\u00a0 continued swimming and playing music. Tester, a former music teacher, lost three fingers on his left hand when he was a child.<div class=\"well\"><div class=\"dfad dfad_pos_1 dfad_first\" id=\"_ad_652\"><a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/goo.gl\/mjhWkW\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/lastbestnews.com\/site\/wp-content\/uploads\/201703_capeair_variable.jpg\" alt=\"CapreAir_Variable\" width=\"510\" height=\"180\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-18069\" \/><\/a><\/div><\/div><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The U.S. Capitol Christmas Tree, cut down in the northwest corner of Montana, was delivered to the West Lawn of the Capitol in Washington, D.C., on Monday. On Wednesday, Dec. 6, Bozeman sixth-grader Ridley Brandmayr will help Sen. Jon Tester, as the senior member of Montana&#8217;s congressional delegation, light the tree in an official ceremony.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":20424,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[18,16,14,1],"tags":[3084,6498,6499,6497,6496],"class_list":["post-20421","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-diversions","category-montana","category-news","category-uncategorized","tag-jon-tester","tag-kootenai-national-forest","tag-larry-spiekermeier","tag-ridley-brandmayr","tag-u-c-capitol-christmas-tree","prominence-top-story"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20421","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=20421"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20421\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":20437,"href":"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20421\/revisions\/20437"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/20424"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=20421"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=20421"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=20421"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}