By Tony Romeo

HARRISBURG, Pa (CBS) — Governor Tom Corbett led the celebration as the Pennsylvania State Capitol Christmas trees were officially lit at sundown Tuesday.

On a balmy night more fit for a luau, the decision to hold the tree lighting ceremony outdoors on the capitol steps for the first time in decades seemed like a good one, even if the snow-making machines brought in for the event seemed a little out of place.

Governor Corbett, in his holiday address, asked the people of Pennsylvania to remember folks in neighboring states who are still recovering from Hurricane Sandy.

“The suffering that those individuals along the coast have taken,” Corbett said, “say a special prayer for them. And you know what — maybe send a check to the Salvation Army and to the Red Cross if you haven’t done so already.”

The ceremony marked the first lighting of a 22-foot Douglas Fir on the Capitol steps, and another 22-foot Douglas Fir in the Capitol Rotunda, where the ceremony has been held in years past.