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Highlands Today

EXTREME DECORATING

Kathy Waters/Highlands Today

Rob Jordan had one light display that appeared to be singing to the words of the Christmas songs.

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By MANDY SHEETS | Highlands Today

Published: December 4, 2007

AVON PARK — Anyone needing some Christmas cheer needn't look further than their own neighbors.

Two Avon Park residents have welcomed the public to their front yards to enjoy lighting displays, with show times from now until the holiday.

Rob Jordan's display, at the corner of East Winthrop Street and North Lake Verona Boulevard, has shows nightly at 7, 7:30, 8 and 8:30 p.m. Richard Reinhardt's display, at the corner of North Bowden Road and Tyler Avenue, has shows nightly at 6, 7 and 8 p.m.

Jordan used to help his mother put up lights every year but his year, he decided to step up the effort in her large corner lot.

"I definitely took it to the extreme this year," Jordan said about his 20,000-light display.

Spectators can tune their radio to the Jordans' radio station, and the lights are synchronized with the music.

Candy canes and trees line the perimeter of the yard, which is filled with a nativity scene, a giant tree and even a smiley face that sings along with popular Christmas tunes.

Jordan even designed many of the decorations himself. If you look closely at the Christmas trees, you will see they are tomato stands and the archways are PVC pipes filled with lights.

"You have to be creative to keep the costs down," Jordan said.

"Carol of the Bells" comes across the radio waves, and the bells hanging in the tree light up one at a time, in unison with the music.

Connor Lambert, 3, stuck his head out the window of his family's car and sang along when "Jingle Bells" started playing.

Josiah Mitchell, 6, thought the singing face was the coolest part of the show.

"I liked everything, especially the singing guy," Josiah said Friday evening. "I want to come back every day and watch it."

Reactions like that are exactly why Jordan spent 11 months programming the show. Each minute of the show takes about 20 hours of computer coding.

Jordan, his wife and parents have seen the show so many times, they now watch the people enjoy it.

"Word keeps spreading, and people are telling their friends," Jordan said. "We love to see families coming out and enjoying it. That's what it's all about."

Robert Werley, of Avon Park, thought the show was so spectacular, he called his friend before it ended and said, "You've got to come out and see this."

"I think this display will bring a lot of joy to people," Werley said. "It's great he took the time to do this."

Across the city, Reinhardt's yard lights up nightly for a 30-minute extravaganza. Reinhardt said he used to be a Scrooge and was never excited about the lighting display.

"I would always dread getting out the lights because they would always be tangled and there wasn't really anything special about our display," Reinhardt said.

Then he saw a video about developing a light display coordinated with music.

"I told my wife if she would let me do that, I would be in the spirit of Christmas," Reinhardt said, and he went to work on the computerized display.

This year, his son, Jeffrey, 8, even helped program the music and light show and regularly checks the lights to make sure they are all functioning .

"He is the technical engineer for the show," Reinhardt said about his son. "It's a great father-son hobby for us to share."

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