*****

His wife adored the holidays. Days after
she died, he found out Rockefeller Center
wanted their tree

Earl Albert's son wondered if Rockefeller Center’s
head gardener, Erik Pauze, was “an angel."

The 2024 Rockefeller Center Christmas tree 
has sentimental roots.

The tree was planted by the Albert family 
back in 1967 in West Stockbridge, Massachusetts,
when Earl Albert and his wife, Leslie Albert,
were still newlyweds.

When the tree was planted, it was only waist-high.
Now, 57 years later, the Norway spruce stands
74 feet tall.

“We first used to decorate it when it was small,
and then it got so big that I couldn’t decorate it,
" Earl Albert told NBC’s Joe Fryer in an
interview with his family.

The towering beauty in western Massachusetts 
caught the attention of Rockefeller Center's
head gardener, Erik Pauze, in 2020.
Pauze adored the tree so much that
he knocked on the Alberts front
door to inquire about the tree.

His timing made Earl Albert's son,
Michael, wonder if Pauze might be
"an angel or something"
because a few days
before Pauze arrived,
his mom, Leslie, had died.

“This is definitely her handiwork,
" Michael Albert's wife,
Shawn, said of the moment.

When asked how it feels to donate their tree
to Rockefeller Center,
Earl Albert said that it's
"probably one of the greatest honors" of his life.

He added that his late wife would be "thrilled"
with what's become of the tree.

Michael Albert noted that donating the tree
also symbolizes a new chapter for their family.

“Honestly, it’s a tribute to my mom.
It’s a new beginning for the tree.
It’s a new beginning for our family," he said.

The tree has already been cut and is en
route to New York City where it'll be adorned
with more than 50,000 multi-colored
LED lights and topped with
a three-dimensional Swarovski star.

When the McGinley family, who donated last year's tree, l
earned that the Alberts were the Rockefeller Center
Christmas tree donors for 2024, they sent the family
a card. In it, the McGinleys wrote about
their heartwarming experiences seeing their
tree standing tall in Rockefeller Center during
the 2023 tree lighting ceremony.

“You’ll never forget the sound, the flip of the switch,
and the roar of the crowd. You’ll get chills,
and just the emotion, it’s overwhelming emotion,
" Shawn Albert recalled the note saying.

The Albert family will get get the chance
to see the tree lighting in person this year,
during which Earl Albert said his late wife
will be on his mind.

In honor of Leslie, the family also plans
to make a memorial for her in the same
spot where the tree once stood in Berkshire County.

The 2024 Rockefeller Center Christmas tree
is set to arrive in New York City
on Saturday, Nov. 9,
and the tree lighting ceremony 
is scheduled to happen on
Wednesday, Dec. 4.