Tuolumne Band of Me-Wuk Indians brings Christmas tree to DC

Tuesday, December 6, 2011  

Two members of the Tuolumne Band of Me-Wuk Indians helped escort the Capitol Christmas Tree from California to Washington, D.C.

Reba Fuller, a government affairs specialist for the tribe, and her 16-year-old grandson, Sheldon Bradford, traveled with the 63-foot-tall, 8,300-pound white fir. The tree came from the Stanislaus National Forest and it was blessed by the tribe before it embarked on a three-week journey across the nation.

"We may never again in our lifetime have an opportunity to travel in an adventure like this," Fuller told The Sacramento Bee, "and that's what it was, an adventure."

A smaller, 19-foot white fir also made the journey. It was installed on Monday outside the National Museum of the American Indian, where it was welcomed with a tribal ceremony.

"I talked to other people from California," tribal member Robert Millis, who cut down the 19-foot tree, "and they said, 'Make the ground shake.' "

The lighting ceremony for the tree takes place this evening.

Get the Story:
Tuolumne County's Me-Wuk tribe helps dedicate Capitol Christmas Tree (The Sacramento Bee 12/6)