ANCHORAGE, Alaska, Nov. 2,
2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Alaska Air Cargo is shipping more
than 4,000 ornaments from the state of Alaska to the District of Columbia today, in support of the
2015 U.S. Capitol Christmas Tree program, in conjunction with the
U.S. Forest Service-Chugach National Forest and Choose
Outdoors.
The colorful hand-decorated ornaments will be used to decorate
the Capitol Christmas Tree displayed on the West Lawn of the U.S.
Capitol for the holiday season, and smaller companion trees
throughout Washington, D.C.
The Chugach National Forest and Choose Outdoors carried out an
extensive campaign to collect ornaments from Ketchikan to Barrow that represent Alaska's natural and cultural resources. The
ornaments were created by communities, youth, tribal organizations,
artists and individuals from across the 49th state.
"Each of the pieces truly represents the spirit of Alaska and the holiday season," said
Marilyn Romano, Regional Vice
President – Alaska. "We are
honored to deliver these hand-crafted ornaments and know Alaskans
will feel proud once they are on display in our nations'
capitol."
This year, the Capitol Christmas Tree is coming from the Chugach
National Forest, which covers an area the size of New Hampshire in south central Alaska. The 74' Lutz
Spruce was cut on Oct. 27 and
is currently en route to Washington,
D.C., celebrating in 15 communities along the way. The
journey will culminate with the official tree lighting ceremony in
December. This is the first time a tree from the state of
Alaska has been selected as the
Capitol Christmas Tree. Alaska Airlines has donated more than
$50,000 to the Capitol Christmas Tree
program this year.
"We're grateful for the time and resources Alaska Airlines is
providing," said Bruce Ward, founder
of Choose Outdoors. "This historic journey is only possible with
the help of strong community partnerships throughout Alaska and beyond state lines."
The ornaments are scheduled to be dropped off at Alaska Air
Cargo in Anchorage on Nov. 3 and are scheduled to arrive at Reagan
National Airport later this week.
For more information on the Capitol Christmas Tree program and
updates on the tree's journey, visit www.capitolchristmastree.com
or www.fs.usda.gov/chugach.
Alaska Airlines transports more than 109 million pounds of cargo
annually—including seafood, mail and freight —and operates the most
extensive air cargo operation on the U.S. West Coast of any
passenger airline.
Alaska Airlines, a subsidiary of Alaska Air Group (NYSE: ALK),
together with its partner regional airlines, serves more than 100
cities through an expansive network in the United States, Canada, Mexico and Costa
Rica. Alaska Airlines ranked "Highest in Customer
Satisfaction Among Traditional Carriers in North America" in the J.D. Power North
American Airline Satisfaction Study for eight consecutive years
from 2008 to 2015. Alaska Airlines' Mileage Plan also ranked
"Highest in Customer Satisfaction with Airline Loyalty Rewards
Programs" in the J.D. Power 2014 and 2015 Airline Loyalty/Rewards
Program Satisfaction Report. For reservations, visit
www.alaskaair.com. For more news and information, visit the Alaska
Airlines/Horizon Air Newsroom at www.alaskaair.com/newsroom.
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SOURCE Alaska Airlines