ST. PAUL, MN – The 2016 Holiday Season at the Minnesota Governor’s Residence will kick-off the evening of Thursday, December 1, 2016 with festive holiday lighting of the outdoor garland and tree. The Residence will be open for public tours on Tuesdays, December 6 and 20, from 11:00am to 1:00pm each day. There will also be an evening tour on Tuesday, December 13 from 5:00pm to 7:00pm. No reservations are required as the tours will be filled on a first-come, first-served basis.
Holiday tours are open-house style, and typically last 20-30 minutes. During the tours, volunteer docents from the Women’s Auxiliary of the Minnesota Historical Society will be on-hand to answer questions in each room on the First Floor and Lower Level of the Residence. The 1006 Summit Avenue Society will also offer a selection of merchandise available for purchase. Proceeds from these sales will help to support the historic Residence.
Each tour will feature a live performance from local musicians, including the Robbinsdale Armstrong Chamber Singers on December 6, pianist Paulette Day on December 13, and the South St. Paul Secondary Acapella Singers on December 20.
The Governor’s Residence is a collection site for Second Harvest Heartland, the Midwest’s largest hunger relief program, and will be accepting donations of non-perishable food items throughout the Holiday Season. All Minnesotans who take a Holiday tour of the Residence are welcome to offer a donation to this important cause.
About This Year’s Decorations
The interior of the home is expertly decorated by five local designers, who have created signature looks for the public spaces at the Residence. These designers, from Studio Emme, Mama’s Happy, Scusi, Susie Ries Interiors and Foxglove Market & Studio, have generously donated the design, materials, and installation of the holiday decorations, with additional participation and decorations from the 1006 Society and Regan’s Brain.
In the Solarium, there will be a live 10-foot tree, donated by Happyland Tree Farm from Sandstone, Minnesota. The tree is decorated with ornaments created by local elementary school students. A 20-foot Balsam Fir tree will be on display on the front lawn of the Residence. The tree was harvested from the Nemadji State Forest, in Pine County by the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources and members of Conservation Corps Minnesota. Rocket Crane Company donated services to help with the installation of the tree, and it is decorated by Warner’s Outdoor Solutions with over 14,000 LED lights. It will be lit for the first time on the evening of December 1.
The gates outside the Residence are decorated with fresh spruce garland, and the wreaths hanging on the front doorway are donated by Mickman Brothers from Ham Lake, Minnesota. Four holiday baskets are hung under the porte-cochere, and are donated by Bachman’s Floral Gift and Garden. The Summit Avenue entrance is decorated by Heidi’s Lifestyle Gardens from Corcoran, Minnesota.
For more information on the tours, please call 651-201-3464 or email residence.gov@state.mn.us.
What: The 1006 Society’s Holiday Tours at the Governor’s Residence
When: December 6 and 20 from 11:00am to 1:00pm
December 13 from 5:00pm to 7:00pm
Where: 1006 Summit Avenue, St. Paul, Minnesota 55105
