WASHINGTON (NEXSTAR) — The holidays are in full swing at the White House. First lady Jill Biden welcomed the official White House Christmas tree on Monday.

The event is a longstanding tradition, but this year the tree has some extra meaning because of where it came from. 

“This beautiful Fraser fir was grown at the Cartner’s Christmas tree farm,” Biden said. 

The Cartner’s farm is located in Western North Carolina, a region that was devastated by Hurricane Helene two months ago. The Cartner family said they did sustain some damage, but the tree that was selected as the White House centerpiece survived. 

“And they named it ‘tree-mendous’, for the extraordinary hope it represents,” Biden said. 

Members of the North Carolina National Guard were present for the tree delivery. The first lady recognized their work on the hurricane recovery efforts and thanked them for their strength and service. 

The official tree is an 18.5 foot Fraser fir that was planted 25 years ago. Sam Cartner Junior says his parents founded the farm where it was grown decades ago, and the family has been growing Christmas trees ever since. 

“My parents were extremely humble people, and they would not like all the attention, but they would be very proud,” Cartner said. 

He says he wants the tree to serve as a symbol of the region’s resilience through a challenging time. 

“Faith and hope and love and joy and family and generosity. All those good things,” Cartner said.

Next, the tree will get all spruced up when volunteers from across the country arrive next week to decorate the White House.