Tri-Towns Bureau

A former Delhi resident recently found that volunteer work can lead to new heights for the holidays.

Kathleen Pernice, a 1973 graduate of Delaware Academy, got a ride recently to the top of the National Christmas Tree in Washington, D.C.

On Nov. 26, she helped the vice president's wife, Lynne Cheney, place the star on top of the tree on the Ellipse during a ceremony.

Born in Delhi, Pernice moved to Endicott in 1986. She still has family in town.

As a financial consultant, her work regularly takes her to Washington, where she volunteers at the White House Visitor Center.

It was that connection, officials said, that made her part of the annual Christmas tree ceremony.

"I was an honorary helper," Pernice said.

Pernice was one of about 60 people who helped Cheney, said Park Service communications officer Bill Line. The National Park Service runs the visitor center and the tree-lighting ceremony.

Her responsibilities, Pernice said, included getting two of Cheney's grandchildren ready for the actual topping of the tree.

"They were delightful little girls," she said.

Pernice said she learned the importance of volunteering from her mother, Edith, who still lives in Delhi.

"When I was growing up, she was busy taking care of six kids," but she has always been involved with the community, Pernice said.

"It is quite impressive, for me, for my kids to be involved," Edith said about her daughter's involvement. She said her parents were "very active in community affairs as well."

As a participant in the ceremony, Pernice said she learned a lot of information about the national tree. For instance, the national toy trains — which are large-scale — run around its bottom. And it is a live tree, unlike the People's Tree, near the Capitol, she said.

During the tour of the White House for volunteers on Dec. 2, Pernice got to see some of the 35 trees decorating that building.

The theme for holiday decorating at the presidential home is "all creatures great and small," Pernice said. So papier-mâché replicas of presidential pets over the years were part of the White House decorations. This included animals as diverse as alligators, raccoons and parakeets, as well as dogs and cats.

President Bush and Laura Bush lighted the National Christmas Tree on Dec. 6.

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