Man’s quest to map Boise’s best Christmas lights gains thousands of followers
William Higginson has always loved the magic of Christmas lights. He likes seeing how different homeowners’ personalities come out in their light shows.
Some people go for the biggest bang: flashing lights covering every inch of the house set to the Christmas rock band Trans-Siberian Orchestra. Others go with a classic style by making their homes look like the perfect gingerbread house. There are those who aim to please the kids with giant inflatable characters from Disney’s “Frozen” paired with the movie’s hit song “Let It Go.” Others put a Nativity scene at the center of their light design.
All require a level of creativity and dedication. The end results are, if not a show-stopping, then car-stopping sense of holiday cheer to passers-by.
The desire to share that joy is the reason Higginson first began his quest to map out the best Christmas lights across the Treasure Valley. He wanted an easy way to show others how to see his favorite home decorations.
“If you’re going with kids, the looks on their faces are just priceless. It’s so magical to them,” Higginson said. “I really thrive on seeing other people just be happy and enjoy themselves, especially over the last few years. So if there’s anything that I can do to bring a little bit of joy into other people’s lives, I’m going to do it.”
When Higginson started his map, it was a small project with about 30 homes and a few followers. Six years later, that project has 110 homes on the list and had nearly 15,000 people using it the week of Dec. 13. Higginson said that number will only grow in the days closer to Christmas. The project’s Facebook page has more than 9,000 followers. The map has spread to other areas of Idaho, with light maps that include Idaho Falls, Rexburg, Pocatello and more.
Higginson is even bringing his light maps to other states. After moving to San Antonio at the end of 2020, he started a branch in his new Texas city.
As Higginson’s following grew, he realized he needed to update his methods. Last year, he made the jump from the outdated blogging platform he had been using to a full website. Christmas-light lovers can go to boisechristmaslights.org to find routes, look up light events and donate to the project. He’s recruited Luthy Shannon, “a well-known former light show creator in Meridian,” to take over the Boise page for on-the-ground needs, but Higginson still puts in much of the work.
The past two years have brought an especially explosive increase in users, which Higginson attributes to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“A lot more people were trying to stay a little more safe,” Higginson said. “They were trying to stay in their cars and didn’t really want to go to big public events. And so, with a lot of things canceled because of COVID, this was one of the last great things that you could do with your family.”
Steve Golen has been doing his locally famous Christmas light show at his Meridian home for the past 27 years. He, too, has noticed an increase in those visiting, part of which he attributes to Higginson’s map. On top of his light show, most nights he greets visitors with a smile and a candy cane. He estimates that he has handed out 7,000 candy canes each season in recent years.
“There will be nights when the line’s clear down the street of people waiting to see the show,” Golen said.
His favorite moments, he said, are seeing his show bring happiness to families. He has a Christmas card with a message of thanks sitting on his table that a visitor gave him. One night, children got out of their cars to dance in the glow of laser lights. He likes giving families a reason to spend time together. Many of the same families have returned year after year.
“I’ve seen families come to my show for five, six years in a row,” Golen said. “It’s really nice to see the kids grow up. And they enjoy it. The parents enjoy it. It gives families time to talk and be together.”
Those moments of family fun are brought through serious time and effort on Golen’s part. He starts planning out shows a year in advance. Christmas light shows have become a growing hobby and supplies can be harder to get, especially with current supply chain issues. Some of the lights used in this year’s show took nearly 12 months to arrive after he ordered them in January.
“The lights a lot of us use in these computerized shows, you can’t just go buy them at Lowe’s,” Golen said. “They’re called pixels. Each one has a processor in it. So you can make each individual ball whatever color you want it to be. You can drill down and control the actual lights so you can get motion and movement and all the stuff you want to do in a show. So the show’s pretty labor intensive and I start setting up the first of October.”
Golen said that the one thing he hopes people remember is to act courteously while visiting home light shows. Golen said he is fortunate to have “great neighbors,” but he asks that visitors be careful not to block nearby driveways or blast loud music. Don’t stop in a spot that blocks the entire show for everyone else, he said. Those hoping to watch should remember that on busy nights, it can sometimes take up to 30 minutes for cars to get their turn to see the show.
“Use your head and your patience, you’ll get to the show,” Golen said.
For those still looking to take a spin around the Valley to see the light shows, here are Higginson’s favorite streets:
1. East Tourmaline Street, Meridian
Those hoping to catch Golen’s light show should head to 1348 E. Tourmaline St. in Meridian. Visitors can tune in to his radio station at 97.3 FM to hear the songs programmed to run in sync with his lights. This year’s show is set to “Let It Go” and Mariah Carey’s “All I Want For Christmas Is You.” The show starts running at 5:30 p.m. each day.
Several homes on East Tourmaline Street have caught the Christmas light bug from Golen. A number of other homes on the street have impressively over-the-top displays, with lots of blowups and a “Despicable Me” wonderland.
2. West Edna Street, Boise
West Edna Street is another where a number of neighbors have done large displays The two highlights are located right next to each other at 9075 and 9091 W. Edna St. Both yards are filled to the brim with Christmas decorations, including a gingerbread family, a light train, laser lights and more.
3. West Parapet Court, Boise
The DeBolt home show has become so well known that it was on ABC’s “The Great Christmas Light Fight.” More than 60,000 lights glow in time to music and three animatronic elves pop up from gift boxes between songs to tell holiday-themed jokes. Tune in to 95.3 FM to hear the show’s soundtrack every night starting at 5:30 p.m. The show helps raise money for the Make-A-Wish foundation.
This story was originally published December 23, 2021 at 1:19 PM.
