Collingwood Light Show: A Community Tradition
Of the many holiday traditions in Alexandria, Va., one of the most memorable is the Collingwood Light Show on Collingwood Road, organized by Aldersgate Church. Almost every year since 1994, Bill Vaughan has created the “largest animated residential display in Virginia.” This display has delighted many locals as they tune into his radio station to watch the lights dance in sync to the music. The display consists of 300,000+ lights, including strobe lights, animated reindeer, shooting stars and other brilliant illusions.
Vaughan says that all of the different types of lights “add [to] the WOW factor in our show”.
Using popular holiday tunes on FM 88.1, Vaughan creates magical scenes across his yard. Some of the songs from previous years include: “Santa Claus is Back in Town” by Elvis Presley, “Little Saint Nick” by The Beach Boys and “Christmas Eve/Sarajevo” by TSO. Though these scenes may seem magical, they are actually controlled by a variety of computers with special software that makes the lights so spectacular.
Many students at West Potomac love visiting this locally famous light display.
“It’s kind of tradition for my family to go to that house every year. It really gets us in the holiday spirit and it makes me happy to hear the Christmas music and watch the lights,” says junior Catherine Chittal.
This year, have your family make a trip to the Collingwood light show to enjoy this community tradition!
Here are some videos of the spectacular show:
