By Kevin Hanson

The Courier-Herald

As Sheryl Karle stepped forward to meet First Lady Laura Bush two weeks ago, she turned to look at the gorgeous Christmas tree behind them - and there was an ornament of her own creation.

It was that single ornament, which started as a bare piece of wood and is now destined for a Smithsonian collection, that resulted in Karle - along with her husband, Mark - heading off for a quick visit to Washington, D.C.

Sheryl and Mark Karle are plenty visible throughout the entire Plateau region. They reside in Bonney Lake but have plenty of friends in Enumclaw, where Mark is the pastor at Hope Lutheran Church.

Sheryl Karle was one of 313 members of the Society of Decorative Painters who hand-painted ornaments for display on the White House Christmas tree. The first lady had proclaimed "A Season of Merriment and Melody" as the theme for the 2004 holiday season at the White House.

A total of 350 ornaments adorn the tree, which was grown in Washington state (Mossyrock, in Lewis County) and now sits in the Blue Room. That's the room where the president and first lady meet and greet guests to the White House.

Karle learned of the opportunity to paint an ornament for the Blue Room tree through her society's magazine and admits to turning out the final product pretty quickly. She received an 11-inch, wooden violin in early September and had it in the return mail by Oct. 5.

By November, "I was waiting to see if my ornament was going to be accepted," she said. That acceptance came in the form of a letter from the White House inviting Karle and a guest to a Dec. 1 reception with Mrs. Bush.

After a background check and some quickly-made airline reservations, the Karles were on their way to Washington.

"It was just amazing, it was so beautiful," Karle said of her visit to the White House, which was decked out in holiday splendor.

Once at the reception, the Karles were amazed at how they were treated. "We were treated as if it were a party at anyone's house," she said, adding that society members were free to wander room to room on the main floor. Guards mentioned that other groups had not been given the same freedom, Karle said.

A member of the Society of Decorative Painters since 1974, Karle has previously had work displayed at the Smithsonian Institution.

Kevin Hanson can be reached at khanson@courierherald.com.