White House Christmas Decorating Volunteer

2019 Holiday Season

By: Amanda Voss AIFD, CFD

It was such an honor to be a part of the 125 individuals chosen this year to decorate the White House for the 2019 holiday season, and also to be a part of the very few participants accredited with AIFD! It was officially stated that over 8,000 people in the United States applied to become a volunteer to decorate this year, what an absolute honor to be one of the individuals chosen for this endeavor, indeed!

It all started with a Google search, "Who decorates the White House for Christmas?" and the rest was history… well almost! Actually, my Google search led me to WhiteHouse.gov, which I had to do a bit of searching to find more information, before I eventually landed upon the application to apply as a volunteer to decorate the White House for the 2019 holiday season. After some hesitation, I submitted my application, and thought, "This is a long shot, but here it goes," considering thousands apply every year.

In October 2019, I received an email from the White House volunteer organization that I had been selected! I could not believe what I was reading, and actually thought it was a spam email at first. After the time spent re-reading the message several times, reality set in- "What?! For real!? Shut Up! I'm going to be decorating the White House for Christmas!"

My designated volunteer days were from November 25th through the 27th. I didn't know what to expect, this being my first experience volunteering for this project.

Many fond memories returned when I arrived in Washington, D.C., since this was the city where I was inducted into AIFD in 2018. Bright and early that Monday morning all of the volunteers were instructed to gather to sign in and complete our paperwork, which included non-disclosure agreements, photography policies, receive our work apron, and our team assignments. Lots of hugs and introductions were received from both newbies and veteran volunteers from years past. We then were introduced to the representatives from the White House working directly with the First Lady, and loaded the busses to begin our work for the day at an undisclosed location.

We arrived, we were introduced to this year's theme, "The Spirit of America." We then were instructed to gather with our teams and receive our work assignments. I was designated to team "Sprinkle" and we would be designing the mixed metallic magnolia trees to be placed in the Grand Foyer. We began with preparing and repainting the cone bases that were used last year for the red trees. Boxes upon boxes of faux mixed metallic colored magnolia foliage branches were waiting for us to fluff and shape by hand. By that afternoon, we were ready to attach the branches to the cones and see the fruits of our labor become reality.

It was such a treat to work closely with the other volunteers on my team. The diversity and experiences were vast, from an event designer, two finance advisors, a teacher, a Navy veteran, a well-known event coordinator, a world traveler, a mom and son, and couple that volunteered the previous year. I tell you, having advanced floral skills allowed for some awesome teaching moments, technical problem solving, and successful execution of transforming a vision to reality. After a very long day, we completed our designs, said our goodbyes, loaded the buses, and on to day two!

Photo Credit: Ms. Barbara Johnson via Facebook 2019 White House Volunteers Group

Tuesday led us to being one of two teams – Team Sprinkle & Team Twinkle – assigned to the White House for our work! With fresh trees still being placed, today was lighting day. Our team was responsible for lighting the trees in the Grand Foyer and divided in half to assist lighting the tree on the Blue Room. After a catered breakfast provided by the White House, we gathered in the State Dining Room for a tutorial on how the lighting was specifically to be done, and we began our work. Workers from the US Forest Service carefully prepared and secured trees in their bases for us to safely begin our work, and a sea of box upon box of LED light strings were scattered throughout the rooms. The Secret Service was abound, and they were also the only individuals allowed to assist us when a ladder needed to be moved. Everything was incredibly organized to the smallest detail.

As we continued to work, I met another floral designer on team Twinkle that was on a bit of a career hiatus, but also dreamed of becoming a member of AIFD from years ago. We certainly had a lot to chat about, and how the testing process is now the hands-on PFDE, along with sharing our love of flowers, and design. She is now interested in preparing to test in 2021! Super exciting!

As the work day was drawing to a close, there was definitely an energy of spirited teamwork, friendships and collaboration. Lighting at this point was about 70% complete in our assigned areas, and we all could not believe the opportunity to witness the beginning of the transformation of the different rooms taking place. We said our goodbyes, were escorted to gather our belongings and exit the White House. Day two was complete, and we looked onward as all of the teams would be back together working at the White House the next day.

Our final decorating day had much in store, with lighting to be completed and the placement of the decor was to start. We were briefed by the staff after breakfast and gathered in our assignment areas to begin completing our spaces. Each tree, one by one was being finished up. Teams in other rooms were completing their designs of silk amaryllis, bows, wreaths, fireplace mantles with so much history draped in garlands among the chandeliers reflecting the twinkling of lights among the laugher and chatter. There were moments I would stop, and stand in complete awe of not only where I was, but admiring the sheer beauty of our efforts and the harmony of love and collaboration surrounding me, within the People's House. When our final day was complete, a home was now transformed into a glow that was so absolutely breathtaking, words cannot describe it. I will forever remember this experience, the friends I had made, the moments of sharing the love of what we do, and the brief moment in time our lives were changed forever.