

Volunteering at the White House for Christmas is a bucket list item for many people, and I have posted on this blog about how to apply and the best way to get accepted at Decorating the White House 2015. I have participated twice, in 2011 and 2015, and to my delight discovered others have applied after reading about my experiences and been accepted.



How to Apply to The White House
Work on the White House decorations starts at least six months in advance by designers at Rafanelli Events and consulting with Michelle Obama via sketches and concepts for each room. During the preceding summer volunteers can apply online from April to August to decorate the White House by going to WhiteHouse.gov. Learning if you make the cut in October, there are about 85 to 90 people across the country selected to take part. Explaining why you want to volunteer in a short essay and sending pictures of your work are requirements on the application.


As a volunteer you do not receive any compensation and you pay your hotel, transportation, and most meal costs for a week after Thanksgiving, so this isn’t an inexpensive proposition. But the experience of working at The White House is exhilarating and so much fun, that everyone is really excited, even if you are just wiring up ornaments and moving boxes!

I have applied every year since 2010, and been accepted twice in that time and each time I decorated has been different. It seems that each year, the decorations get glittzier and more elaborate. But I see many ornaments and props being reused and only ten percent are new this year. Even re-purposed things like the snowmen that sat outside in 2015 are lining the Lower Cross Hall this year.


Since I was not accepted this year, some of my pictures are from Mandy Barkley who worked at The White House last year and did all the mantels this year, and Linda Vodney who was accepted for the first time and decorated the Cross Hall of the White House this year.


For a great article and more pictures of this last Christmas for the Obamas, themed “The Gift of the Holidays”, go to Daily Mail.

The mantel below in the Vermeil Room, which has seven First Lady portraits on the soft yellow walls and features a collection of “vermeil”, which are gilded silver items or “dipped in gold”, glows with pinks and yellows and a ballerina theme. The colors complement the beauty of the Jacqueline Kennedy and Lady Bird Johnson portraits that are among the First Lady’s portraits in the room.



Volunteers with a love of decorating are accepted every year, but it helps if you have floral/interior design experience or people-centered work, like volunteering, teaching or nursing. I have worked with lots of people at the White House who were teachers or people in the education field and Gold Star mothers. Regardless, you work with a cross-section of people from all walks of life and all age ranges.


I was in charge of a team that made a dozen cedar gold stars that hung in the East Wing in 2011
A Little History
Working in the White House which is a “living museum”, is so interesting that you realize the tremendous stories and history of the place. Just glancing around, you are surrounded by hints of what took place in the past. When I spotted the gorgeous full length portrait of Grace Coolidge, I was intrigued and was inspired to find out more about this remarkable woman. The wife of Calvin Coolidge, President from 1923-29, she was voted as one of the 12 most remarkable living women of 1931. One of the most popular hostesses of the White House, she adored her white collies and Rob Roy was the first dog that appeared in an official White House portrait. She even kept a pet raccoon at the White House briefly!

Tragically on June 30, 1924, sixteen-year old Cal, one of Grace’s boys, played tennis on the White House courts, and developed a blister on his toe which became infected. Blood poisoning set in. In a day before antibiotics would have cleared his system of the spreading infection, Cal died at Walter Reed within a week.
Another nugget that I uncovered about Grace, was her famous meeting with Helen Keller and companion Anne Sullivan in a silent newsreel clip. Fascinating stuff from looking at a White House portrait!
Gingerbread House
Constructed by the White House pastry chef, the gingerbread house is always my favorite decoration. A tradition started in 1969, it seems that each year, it becomes more elaborate and detailed.

The gingerbread house in 2015 was again modeled after the White House and designed by Executive Pastry Chef Susan Morrison, and made with 250 pounds of gingerbread, 150 pounds of chocolate and another 75 pounds of sugar and gum paste. Covered with dark chocolate, this whopper weighed in at almost 500 pounds! This 2016 season’s house, created also by Pastry Chef Susan Morrison, is made of 150 pounds of gingerbread, 100 pounds of bread dough, 20 pounds of gum paste, 20 pounds of icing, and 20 pounds of sculpted sugar pieces.


This year’s theme, ‘The Gift of the Holidays,’ was chosen to reflect the joy of giving and receiving, along with such gifts as service, friends, family, education and good health. For the official White House tour book for an explanation of each decorated room, go to 2016 White House Tourbook which everyone gets a copy of when touring the White House.








Volunteer Reception


A volunteer reception is held at the conclusion of all your decorating efforts on the last evening and you get a formal invitation from the First Lady, Michelle Obama. Allowed to bring one person with you to see the “big reveal”, which is the culmination of all the decorators hard work in its full glory at night is a huge treat.







Next year I will apply again with the new administration. It will be interesting to see what happens!
Looks like a fabulous experience. Merry Christmas!
Merry Christmas to you!
I’m glad you post the White House decorations every year, even though you may not be involved yourself. I wish you luck for next year! I have a broken arm this year so decorating is restricted and I’m so frustrated! Thanks for the fix! Happy Holidays!
So sorry! I had my hand operated on (Carpal) around Christmas and it was hard!
Best of luck on your application for next year Claire. Love your postings and pictures. Thank you so much for bringing this to all of us who don’t get to the White House to see these beautiful decorations.
Thanks, Linda. You are a loyal reader!
Thank you for sharing your experiences. I’ve been wanting to Volunteer myself for years but life events and responsibilities have taken front row. This year I was hoping to do it however I’m unable to find a link for the application process. If you don’t mind sharing this I’d appreciate it. Best of luck to you for 2017! It looks like such a wonderful event to be a part of.
Sincerely,
Karen Perez
Karen ,The link is not active yet. It usually appears in June, but with the new administration, things could change. I just google “decorating white house for Christmas” in the summer and if they are doing it, the link should appear. Good luck!
Thanks so much for the info. I was afraid I’d missed the window of opportunity. I’ll keep my eyes posted!
I have been looking for the link, I do not think it has yet been posted.
Do you have the link to apply? I am so very interested in this. I have been wanting to this for a long time💗
whitehouse.gov…But it appears around June, you just have to keep looking
Where is the form to apply for decorating the White House for 2017?
I don’t know. It is not on the whitehouse.gov site yet.
I am very interested in applying to decorate the White House. I tried your link and it does not appear there is an application on the white house site this year. have you had any luck finding an application?
None. It is not active so I have no idea what is happening this year
I did actually call The White House switchboard directly last week and asked. They said to go to the website. Apparently there is a lack of communication.
Very likely! I called and got a recorded message
Thank you, should you see something would you mind posting information. I too will keep looking.
Will do
How did you make out with your application this year? This is high on my must-do list and I plan to apply for 2018!
I am decorating right now. Stay tuned for my post in 2 weeks!
This is a bucket list for me! I have tried to figure out how to apply with the new administration but I can’t figure out how. Any new tips?
Margaret, try contacting the White House Visitors office. I believe they’ve made their list of Volunteers for 2018 (I didn’t get chosen) but this is the office that contacted me to thank me for applying with an Invitation to try again next year. If possible I will try again for 2019 and I encourage you to also. Good Luck.
Yes, you just have to continue to apply every year when the application appears on the White House website sometime in the summer
Thanks for the info. I looked frequently and never saw an application. Where were you able to apply for this year?
I decided not to apply this year.
Thank you for the info. Where were you able to apply this year because I never saw an application.
Sorry to post twice. The above was meant for Karen Ann Ritter-Perez
I responded to a link my son sent me that he saw was posted on Fox News. The White House Vsitors Office is who notified me that I hadn’t been selected. So next year I will keep checking on the White House Website but I’m also going to contact the Visitor’s Office as well. Good Luck to you, I hope you’re able to apply for 2019.
Good luck next year!