For wedding-industry professional Colleen T. Wheeler, a trip to Washington this November will be unlike any event installation she’s worked on before.
Wheeler has been selected to serve as a volunteer Christmas decorator at the White House for the 2026 holiday season.
She will join other selected volunteers in Washington in late November to help transform one of the country’s most recognizable residences for Christmas.
But Wheeler’s acceptance is also a story about persistence.
This wasn’t her first application.
She previously applied for the opportunity and wasn’t selected.
She tried again.
And this time, the answer was yes.
From Weddings and Theater to the White House
Wheeler brings a background that seems particularly suited to an undertaking involving design, production and transforming spaces.
Her experience spans the wedding industry, theater and creative entrepreneurship, and her family is involved with two distinctive wedding venues in the Upstate South Carolina area—a historic 1920s mansion and a Victorian greenhouse.
For Wheeler, design also goes back much further.
She grew up around creativity, with parents involved in design and importing, giving her an early foundation in visual presentation and creating environments.
Those experiences eventually became part of a professional life centered around events and experiential production.
Now those skills are taking her to Washington.
What White House Christmas Volunteers Do
Selected Christmas decorating volunteers are scheduled to work at the White House November 23 through November 29.
The undertaking brings together volunteers from around the country to help execute the holiday vision throughout the White House.
Volunteers are responsible for their own travel and accommodations, making participation a significant personal commitment as well as an honor.
For Wheeler, however, the opportunity represents something she was willing to pursue more than once.
The Wedding Industry Connection
Wedding professionals may recognize many of the skills required for an undertaking like this.
Transforming a room before guests arrive.
Working within a larger creative vision.
Managing intricate details.
Collaborating with people from different specialties.
Producing something beautiful under a firm deadline.
And doing much of the work before the public ever enters the room.
That’s everyday life for many wedding professionals.
Wedding production requires a combination of creativity and logistics that can be difficult to understand until you’ve watched a venue transform in a matter of hours.
Those skills aren’t limited to weddings.
Trying Again
Perhaps one of the most meaningful parts of Wheeler’s story is also one of the simplest.
She wasn’t chosen the first time.
She applied again.
For creative professionals who regularly hear no—from clients, competitions, venues, media opportunities and countless other parts of running a business—that may be as valuable a lesson as the acceptance itself.
One rejection didn’t determine the outcome of the next application.
This November, Wheeler will head to Washington as part of the team preparing the White House for the 2026 Christmas season.
And she’ll bring a little bit of the wedding industry’s talent for transforming spaces with her.
Editor’s Take
Wedding professionals sometimes underestimate how specialized their skills really are.
Creating beautiful environments under pressure while coordinating people, production and countless details is not something everyone can do.
Colleen Wheeler’s selection to help decorate the White House is a wonderful reminder that the talents developed inside the wedding industry can take professionals into some remarkable places.
