JingleLights kicked off this week at the home of Ken and Tanya Collins in Central Park.
This isn’t just any Christmas light display. They’ve synched lasers, video mapping and more than 200,000 individual bulbs with upbeat holiday music to create four different 40-minute shows. This year’s selections include pieces from the Navy Swing Band, the Trans-Siberian Orchestra, Mannheim Steamroller and the TV show “Glee.”
It’s an incredibly time-consuming project, even with plenty of help from neighbor Travis Davis and Tanya’s father, Doug Nord. They started working on it before Halloween.
“It takes a week to 10 days to set up all the fixtures, then another month or so for the wiring,” says Ken. And that’s far from the end of it: “It takes about 60 hours just to program one song.”
This year’s show debuted Wednesday and will continue through Christmas. Nightly start times are 6, 7 and 8 p.m. Wednesdays through Sundays, with an extra 9 p.m. show on Fridays and Saturdays. They’re dark Mondays and Tuesdays — except for Christmas Day, when all four shows will be presented.
They’ve been doing this annually since 2005, but took a hiatus last year for health reasons. And they’ve decided this season will be their last.
“We’re going to do it up this year and then call it macaroni,” Tanya says with a smile. “We’ve got a bucket list to tend to.” They’re fixing up an RV to prepare for their first road trip, probably this spring.
But they don’t want the show to fade away. They’re actively looking for someone to take the reins — another homeowner, or possibly a business or local government. Ken says he’ll donate the materials and some time to help keep it going.
The house is at 802 Reynvaan Drive in Central Park. (From Highway 12, turn north onto Reynvaan across from the Central Park Fire Station, then drive seven-tenths of a mile up the hill.) Dress for the weather, and bring chairs or blankets to sit on. Parking is limited, so carpooling is encouraged.
Cash donations will be requested for the Grays Harbor Shop With a Cop program, which rewards deserving students on the Harbor.
For updates, check the JingleLights Facebook page.