West St. Paul was one stop along the route of a 100-foot long truck lugging a white spruce from the Chippewa National Forest to Washington, D.C. For 50 years, a Christmas tree has been erected on the west lawn of the U.S. Capitol. This year, the U.S. Forest Service, Choose Outdoors and the Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe are providing the evergreen. Garlough Environmental Magnet School in West St. Paul hosted the event Nov. 6 where kids could see the tree in the truck and write a message to the Capitol. photos by Linda E. Andersen/Review