His wife adored the holidays. Days after she died, he found out Rockefeller Center wanted their tree

The 2024 Rockefeller Center Christmas tree has sentimental roots.

The tree was planted by the Albert family back in 1967 in West Stockbridge, Massachusetts, when Earl Albert and his late wife, Leslie, were still newlyweds.

When the tree was planted, it was only waist-high. Now, 57 years later, the Norway spruce stands 74 feet tall.

"We first used to decorate it when it was small, and then it got so big that I couldn't decorate it," Earl Albert told NBC's Joe Fryer in an interview with his family.

The towering beauty of Western Massachusetts caught the attention of Rockefeller Center's head gardener, Erik Pauze, in 2020. Pauze adored the tree so much that he knocked on the Alberts front door to inquire about the tree.

His timing made Earl Albert's son, Michael, wonder if Pauze might be "an angel or something" because a few days before Pauze arrived, his mom, Leslie Albert, had died.

"This is definitely her handiwork," Michael Albert's wife, Shawn, said of the moment.

When asked how it feels to donate their tree to Rockefeller Center, Earl Albert said that it's "probably one of the greatest honors" of his life.

He added that Leslie would be "thrilled" with what's become of the tree.

Michael Albert noted that donating the tree also symbolizes a new chapter for their family.

"Honestly, it's a tribute to my mom. It's a new beginning for the tree. It's a new beginning for our family," he said.

The tree has already been cut and is en route to New York City where it'll be adorned with more than 50,000 multi-colored LED lights and topped with a three-dimensional Swarovski star.

When the McGinley family, who donated last year's tree , learned that the Alberts were the Rockefeller Center Christmas tree donors for 2024, they sent the family a card. In it, the McGinleys wrote about their heartwarming experiences seeing their tree standing tall at Rockefeller Center during the 2023 tree lighting ceremony.

"You'll never forget the sound, the flip of the switch, and the roar of the crowd. You'll get chills, and just the emotion, it's overwhelming emotion," Shawn Albert recalled the note saying.

The Albert family will get get the chance to see the tree lighting in person this year, during which Earl Albert said his late wife will be on his mind.

In honor of Leslie, the family also plans to make a memorial for her in the same spot where the tree once stood in Berkshire County.