PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — An Oregon Christmas tree farm is getting some unexpected attention after a mistake in a press release from first lady Melania Trump’s office cast a spotlight on their business.
According to CNN, the first lady’s office incorrectly said the 2020 White House Christmas tree was coming from a farm in Lebanon, Oregon. A White House communications official corrected the farm and the state Friday, saying the 18.5-foot Fraser fir is in fact coming from Dan and Bryan’s Tree Farm in Shepherdstown, West Virginia.
However, confusion arose again Sunday when Melania Trump tweeted saying the tree was coming from “Oregon’s West Tree Farm.” This tweet was later deleted and replaced with a tweet that again clarified the tree was coming from West Virginia.
While there is not a “West Tree Farm” in Oregon, there is West’s Tree Farm, located in Lebanon.
Tree farm owner Jon West said the whole situation has given his family something to laugh about.
“We are not, not, not, not, not furnishing a Christmas tree for the White House,” West said. “Somebody somewhere made a mistake and instead of the tree coming from West Virginia, it got sent out that the tree was coming from West Tree Farm – little bit of difference.”
West said word spread rapidly on social media after the initial release Friday. He said Gov. Kate Brown had even tweeted congratulating his farm. Her office later left West a message apologizing for the mistake.
West doesn’t have a clue where the mistake originated. He said he did not apply to send a tree to the White House and hasn’t been in correspondence with anyone there.
“I would gladly take a tree back to Melania, but she hasn’t asked,” West said.
Although he was receiving calls all weekend from media outlets across the state, West said he’s still in good spirits about the entire situation.
“There are very few things to make us laugh in this 2020 year, so we’ll take what we can get,” he said.
The last time Oregon supplied a tree to the White House was in 2018. A sweet home fir from the Willamette National Forest made the journey to D.C. to serve as the Capitol Christmas tree.