Two Christmas wishes were granted Thursday morning when a 62-foot Norway spruce growing in the northern suburbs was chopped down to become Chicago’s Christmas tree in Millennium Park.
The Dorfler family tree in Grayslake was selected from a field of 71 candidates submitted for consideration to the city of Chicago’s Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events for its 104th Christmas tree. After being taken down on Thursday, the donated spruce is scheduled to be installed Friday night at Millennium Park in Chicago, and the tree lighting is set for Nov. 17.
“It was my husband’s dream for it to go somewhere to be used as a Christmas tree, like Washington D.C.,” Darlene Dorfler said, but this was the perfect opportunity for their beautiful tree. Her husband, Frank, passed away in 2016.
Dorfler added that her neighbor and part of the family who originally planted the spruce — Arlene Olsen, who also has since passed — had a similar dream for the tree.
“She always said it was such a perfect tree that it should be lit up. She probably planted it as a sapling. So we have a combination of dreams,” Dorfler said.
Her son, Edward, said the family found out last week that their tree was picked, and workers from Brightview Landscaping Services of Long Grove were sent to tie up all the branches for the big move to the city.
“Within an hour, they were up in the tree wrapping it. For me, that was fascinating to watch,” he said.
“My mom is just tickled to death by this,” he added. “This was a perfect A-frame tree.”
His mother heard about the contest on the news, and her son’s girlfriend, Donna Caringello, volunteered to follow up with the paperwork.
“It was a really simple submission. Just name, phone number, address and a picture,” she said.
They also asked why it should be THE tree for Chicago.
“I just wrote that it was just a beautiful tree, and it would make a great Christmas tree,” she said.
Edward Dorfler explained that the original owners would go up north every year and bring back saplings, and that is why there are big conifers around the neighborhood.
“But, as you can see, people cut them back to mow underneath. This was the only one that wasn’t trimmed,” he said.
Edward Dorfler said the family moved into the subdivision when he was around 12 in 1975. He never climbed the tree, and all the surrounding neighbors left it alone. The spruce was measured as 35 feet across at the base and, after being cut, it weighed in at 9,500 pounds. It barely fit on a semi-trailer flatbed.
Jim Williams, production manager for Brightview, said there were 35 rings on the tree, but some were blurred so it was very hard to count.
“It’s clearly older,” he told Darlene. “It’s 70-plus years, give or take five years.”
The tree was set to go to Long Grove Thursday night and be moved to Chicago on Friday. Williams said the crew will probably work until 3 or 4 in the morning before the tree is set in its base and all the cables are secured so it doesn’t move.
Erin Nauer, project manager with the city’s cultural affairs and special events office, said there will be 50,000 multicolored lights decorating the tree for the Nov. 17 lighting that the Dorflers will attend, along with Santa Claus and other dignitaries.
Workers cut a few slabs from the stump and gave them to the Dorflers as souvenirs, and they also collected some pine cones from the tree.
“We’ll do something with them,” Darlene Dorfler said. Her son said they will probably take some pictures from the tree-cutting event and the lighting and make something commemorative out it.
Then his girlfriend joked, “We got a new project for you: making end tables,” referring to the slabs of wood as everyone laughed.
Darlene Dorfler didn’t shed any tears, but she was a little melancholy.
“Well, it was quite amazing the way they did it. It’s sad that it’s gone, but it’s going to a good place,” she said. “My husband’s dream was to have it displayed for Christmas.”