Visitors flock to winter wonderland light display in honor of family's late son
A family is adorning their home with hundreds of thousands of Christmas lights in honor of their late son.
Ross and Michelle Clark have been turning their front yard into a winter wonderland for the past 22 years, after their baby boy, Jack, died at just six days old after his premature birth, news agency SWNS reported.
Each year, the holiday display has gotten brighter and bolder with more and more lights added to the festive home, located on Colonels Lane in Boughton-under-Blean near Canterbury in Kent, England.
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The Clarks always flip the switch on the light display on Nov. 24, Jack Clark's birthday, SWNS reported.
Michelle Clark delivered Jack prematurely at 36 weeks. He died six days later on Nov. 30.
What started as lighting a single candle in memory of him has turned into a full light display and winter wonderland.
"It's like a light for Jack up in the sky," Ross Clark, a company director from Boughton-under-Blean, Kent, told SWNS.
"It started off basically just around like a window or a door frame, and it just grew from there. It got bigger and bigger."
The whole family comes together to set up the display, with months and months of preparation leading up to the big day.
As early as September, the Clark parents, along with their two children, Ellie and Lewis Clark, start checking the lights, fixing decorations in need of repair and coming up with a layout for the wonderland.
"It’s a lot of work, but seeing the joy on people’s faces, especially the little ones, makes it all worth it," Ross Clark told SWNS.
The family has estimated they've spent nearly $40,000 on lights and ornaments over the years, the news agency said.
The Clark home will be adorned with a giant illuminated reindeer, a snow-blowing machine and a moving Santa.
One of the displays on the front lawn of the home is a memory tree — a place where visitors can write notes for loved ones they have lost.
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As expected, the electric bill tends to be quite a bit higher than other months of the year — but the family believes it's all about honoring their son.
"It's about more than just the lights. It's about remembering Jack," Ross Clark told SWNS.
"And now, it’s something the whole community comes to enjoy and to raise awareness for neonatal charities."
Visitors come from all over the community and from miles around to see the Clark family home lit up for their son Jack.
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The family is raising donations for The Oliver Fisher Special Care Baby at Medway Maritime Hospital, SWNS noted.
"We’ll keep making it bigger and better every year," Ross Clark added.
"It’s for Jack, for the charity and for everyone who comes to see it."