Penn State Behrend will begin the holiday season with a candlelit program at Wintergreen Gorge Cemetery, where students, faculty, staff and alumni will honor the Behrend family on Dec. 8. The program will begin at 7 p.m. in the Behrend Chapel.

The Hanging of the Greens is the oldest tradition at Penn State Behrend. Each year, a small group from the college gathers at the Behrend family chapel to sing Christmas carols and place a wreath on the doors to the mausoleum.

The tradition began in 1948, when T. Reed Ferguson, the administrator at what was then called the Behrend Center, placed a wreath as a favor to Mary Behrend, who had donated her family’s farm to Penn State. She was present at the center’s dedication, just two months before, but had since moved to Connecticut. She had asked Ferguson to hang an evergreen wreath to honor her late husband and son, who were interred at the chapel.

“There is a lot to think about when you sit in that chapel, surrounded by others who feel a deep connection to the college,” said Ken Miller, senior director of administration and student affairs. “It’s an opportunity to pause and reflect on the meaning of what can be a hectic and hurried season, and to appreciate the generosity of the Behrend family, which has put generations of students on the path to something better.”