Washington? For all that Francis and Margaret Botek have to be proud of – take their three children and eight grandchildren, for starters – it was an 18 1/2-foot tree that brought the family to the ...

The Douglas fir had been growing in the rolling Mahoning Valley field for at least the past 20 years. In that time — through the forces of nature and tender nurturing of its owners, the tree grew to ...

Gary Walters, White House chief usher, talks with tree-farm owner Francis Botek about picking out a Christmas tree for the White House Blue Room at Crystal Spring Tree Farm in Mahoning Township.

LEHIGHTON, Pa. — White House Chief Usher Gary J. Walters walked up a hillside at the Crystal Spring Tree Farm outside of Lehighton, Pa., and gazed over a rolling hill filled with towering Christmas ...

For all that Francis and Margaret Botek have to be proud of — take their three children and eight grandchildren, for starters — it was an 181/2-foot tree that brought the family to the White House and ...