News Release Archive
ECONOMIC RENEWAL--BOSTON TREE PARTY ------------------------------------------------------------ For first time ever, the Nova Scotia family providing this year's Boston Christmas tree will attend the 24th annual tree lighting ceremony. The Watson family of Hall's Harbour, King's County, will accept the gift of airfare and accommodation from the sponsors of the event, the Prudential Realty Group. The family, Dave, Sharon, and children Sarah, 12, Jeena, 5, and Christopher, 3, will fly to Boston on the morning of the ceremony, Dec. 2. They will be guests on stage with Economic Renewal Minister Robbie Harrison, who will bring greetings from Nova Scotia. The Watson children will also pull the switch that lights up the 17,000 bulbs on the tree. The lighting of the 50-foot-high white spruce is the focus of the event, which draws more than 25,000 people annually. The gift of a Christmas tree each year remains a gesture of thanks from the people of Nova Scotia to New Englanders who offered swift assistance following the 1917 Halifax explosion. Twenty-two members of the 78th Highland Regiment will also attend the ceremony, lending a distinctly Maritime feel to the occasion. The minister will also use the occasion to meet with major convention and meeting planners at a Greater Halifax Conventions and Meetings Bureau reception that coincides with the event. "The tree lighting ceremony is one of Boston's most publicized events and it gives Nova Scotia a strong profile," said Mr. Harrison. "It provides the ideal background for our private sector to attract business to our province." -30- Contact: Steve Warburton 902-424-0927 trp Nov. 29, 1995