Dylan Johnson

Villanova’s Christmas tree, which was noticeably larger than previous ones, was still being built as of Thursday morning.

On Thursday, Dec. 4, an hour before Villanova University’s annual Christmas tree lighting on the Rowen Campus Green, the tree was taken down out of an abundance of caution.

An hour before the 5 p.m. tree lighting event, maintenance crews blocked off the area around the tree and conducted a partial controlled demolition of it. It was taken down after the base of the tree sank into the ground due to rainfall earlier in the week, making the tree lopsided and unstable. 

It was supposed to be rebuilt on Friday, Dec. 5, Villanova Director of University Events and Initiatives Nick Tumolo told The Villanovan.

Instead, a new tree was ordered and brought in on Monday, Dec. 8, and was completed on Tuesday, Dec. 9. A flat base was placed under the tree to distribute the weight and stop it from sinking.

“The rain that we had made the ground super muddy and soft underneath [the tree],” Tumolo said. “They didn’t anticipate how soft that ground gets. So the tree actually started to settle into the ground because of the weight of it. It made the frame unbalanced.”

The tree, which is larger than the previous trees, was still being built as of early last Thursday morning after delays due to rain earlier in the week.

When University President Rev. Peter M. Donohue O.S.A, Ph.D., took the stage to speak about the Advent season, he informed the crowd of the tree’s whereabouts. Fr. Peter jokingly referred to the event as ‘Christmas Trees’ lighting since the rest of the trees on the Rowen Campus Green were strung with lights and were set to be lit alongside the main tree.

“We did have a big Christmas tree standing right here a couple of hours ago,” Fr. Peter said. “And unfortunately, the wind had another idea. And the tree decided to go with the wind. [It’s] coming back tomorrow, and being secured more.”

Hours prior, around 2:15 p.m., senior Jenna Parker, a member of The Villanova Voices, saw the tree on her way to class and did not notice any issues with it. Upon returning to do the choir’s voice check for the event around 3:45 p.m., the top half of the tree was missing, and the rest of the tree was lying on its side.

“I was going to sing, and we were meeting for our sound check,” Parker said. “I see the tree instead of being nice and standing, the whole top half is gone, it’s kind of leaning sideways and they’re taking off the bundles of green and all the ornaments.”

She then watched as crews packed up the pieces of the tree into multiple trailers minutes before the start of the event. Parker said her choir director, Christine Nass, asked crews if the tree would go back up. A member of the crew told Nass there was not enough time to put it back up on Thursday night.

The event went on despite the absence of the tree, with the rest of the Christmas lights being lit, including the ‘Merry Christmas Villanova’ sign. The event also included a visit from Santa Claus, s’mores, and more performances from the Villanova Voices and Singers.

“It’ll be up in plenty of time for the Holiday Village, which is actually our biggest holiday and Christmas event of the year,” Tumolo said. “It’s far, far, far bigger than the actual tree lighting. So, I’m happy that it will be up and be able to be enjoyed for that.”

Villanova’s Christmas tree, as well as the remainder of the lights and decorations across campus, will be on display through the new year.