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11/20/2019 11:00 PMIt's been a full decade and the annual Ivoryton Illuminations is still getting bigger and better every year. What started as a conversation between friends has grown into the third-largest holiday light show in the state, something for which the village of Ivoryton is very proud.
"Honestly, we never thought it would get this big or last this long," says event founder Chris Shane.
Shane's affinity for holiday light displays was born when he lived in Bermuda and the entirety of Front Street was festively lit up for the holiday season. He and his young son would walk dow n the street together and marvel at the uplifting spectacle. When Shane's family moved to Essex, he kept the tradition of impressive Christmas light shows alive and had personally collected 50,000 holiday lights by the time he moved to Ivoryton. One night, he was chatting with a friend at the Ivoryton Pub and they agreed, "Wouldn't it be great to light up the Ivoryton Green?" The rest... well, is the last 10 years of history.
"Our first year we had 100,000 lights; last year we had 500,000," says Shane. "It really is something."
A lot of work goes into the planning and execution of the ornate display.
"We start working on it in October, getting the lights out of storage, testing them all, ordering what we need," says Shane, who praised volunteer Steve May for the integral part he plays in the light manifesto.
"Steve is a wonderful volunteer. He works nights at Tower Labs and during the months of October and November, immediately after work, he goes to the Ivoryton Green and works on the lighted trees that he makes by hand. If we were going to buy those trees, they would cost $50,000, so we are very grateful that Steve shares his carpentry expertise with us," says Shane.
But the lights are just a part of the entire phenomenon of the Illuminations. There are many other moving parts that come together on the night of the actual event that make it such a memorable and special happening.
On Saturday, Dec. 7, in addition to the much-anticipated lighting of the gigantic Christmas tree in the center of the green, the evening's spectacle also includes refreshments sold by the Essex Lion's Club, a petting zoo, and an Elf on the Shelf scavenger hunt. Area boy scouts, various church groups, and the Valley Booster Club also sell goods in the Ivoryton Fire House, and a Stuff-a-Cruiser with non-perishable food items for the soup kitchen is on site.
A key attraction of the evening is the aerial arrival of Santa in his sleigh (courtesy of some volunteers operating construction equipment). In addition, unwrapped toys that are donated to the Ivoryton Library during the month of November are given out by Santa Claus, who also meets with children to hear their Christmas wishes, pose for free photos, and give out special gifts and candy canes.
"This is really why we do all this, to see the children smile," says Shane.
The lights remain up throughout the month of December, and visitors can tune their car radios into 101.5 FM to watch the lights dance in unison to the holiday music.
In addition, the countdown to Christmas day is always prominently displayed on a large lit-up screen at the end of Shane's driveway, right before the green, to get everyone in the know as to just how many days, hours, and minutes are left before the big guy slides down the chimney.
"The holidays are a magical time and we are all so grateful that we have created something here in Ivoryton that everyone can be a part of and enjoy throughout the entire holiday season," says Shane, who is proud of the Ivoryton Illuminations as well as the inception of the entire Ivoryton Alliance, which started from this one event.
He adds, "We have a great group of volunteers. We are always looking for more, and we hope that everyone comes out this year on the evening of Dec. 7 to see what we have planned and enjoy!"
The 10th annual Ivoryton Illuminations is on Saturday, Dec. 7. For more information or to help with the construction of lights, visit ivorytonalliance.org.