CHICAGO (WBBM NEWSRADIO) -Chicago’s official Christmas tree was removed from the yard of a suburban home Friday morning.
Outside their Darien home, the De La Cruz family watched as their 45-foot-tall Colorado Blue Spruce was cut down and loaded onto a flatbed semi-trailer by a crane.
“It’s a big change, and we won’t be able to see it outside the window anymore, but to be able to see it downtown and lit up one more time is so exciting to anticipate,” Abby De La Cruz said. “The memories about the tree are all about family, the getting together. It reminds us of coming home coming home to family and the memories of being loved and raised together.”
The De La Cruz family has lived in the house for 37 years, Abby said.
“[For] 110 years, the City of Chicago has been lighting a Christmas tree…When you think about [it], 110 years, what a tradition!” said Neil Heitz with the Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events.
The tree was chosen from 100 submissions. It will go up in Millennium Park next week.
“Being able to connect with these families, who are genuinely excited to see their tree in Millennium Park, and all of Chicago to be looking at it and viewing it, feeling proud about it, that’s a really great feeling. Those are the stories that I think really bind our city together,” Heitz added.
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