When September rolled by without “elves” setting up Christmas decorations on the lawn of the Beacon Light/Journey Health System agency, some in the community might have wondered if the annual display was no more.
As it turns out, Beacon Light has decided to stop setting up the well-know, large holiday display on East Main Street because of a lack of resources. Officials hope, however, the annual Christmas display will be acquired by another local entity in the future to continue the popular event.
“Due to the size of our property, we invested a considerable amount of time and money in building (up) the decorations large enough to adequately fill our space,” said Guy Signor, vice president of institutional advancement for the agency. “It has become too expensive for us to commit to the same level of resources to this display.”
The holiday displays were not set up last year due to previous construction and renovations to Beacon Light’s main building. The construction project also damaged electrical lines that ran out into the yard for the displays, Signor said. The situation would have made it challenging to power the displays without additional expenses to repair the electrical infrastructure.
As Beacon Light continues to expand programs and services, space to store the large number of decorations became another challenge, he added.
John Policastro, director of communications for the agency, said a small Christmas display will be set up on the front lawn of the agency to provide a bit of holiday cheer as in the past.
“This was not an easy decision, because we know people liked it and they enjoyed it during the season,” Policastro said of the display that had spread across the large lawn of the agency.
In commenting on the history of the display, Policastro said Beacon Light had set up the Christmas decorations for approximately six years after acquiring the lawn decorations from Dick Williams’ home on Castle Drive. Williams had decorated his property for 12 years. He had acquired the decorations from his late parents on Rockland Avenue, who had set them up approximately 12 years prior to that.
It is with that long tradition in mind that Beacon Light officials are appealing to businesses or agencies to consider decorating with the displays in the future. Policastro said Beacon Light would be willing to pass the displays along to an entity that is sincere in continuing the holiday project.
Policastro noted the amount of work involved with the display, which comprises more than 150 pieces, lights and cords, should be considered. Storage of the items is another consideration, as Beacon Light has the decorations contained in several garages and facilities owned by the agency.
“There is tremendous amount of resources that goes into this, both in terms of people’s time and the expense to set it up,” he continued. “That’s why we typically began setting it up in September, so it’s done in time to coincide with the Christmas parade in town.”
He said volunteers are needed not only to help with setting up and maintaining the display, but also to dress as holiday characters who hand out candy and greet visitors. In addition, individuals are typically hired to handle traffic control on busy nights.
Policastro said the upside to the project is what it gives back to the area community in terms of good will. The East Main Street display attracted children and adults from around the region who drove past the decorations before and after shopping in the area.
“That is originally why we took this,” Policastro said. “An agency like ours prides itself on being community stewards, as well.”
For more information on the Christmas decorations, contact John Pockey, vice president of facilities at Beacon Light, at 817-1400.
