When Lindsay Ford purchased a house on the corner of Thomas Healy Drive he didn't know it had a longstanding Christmas light tradition but has since embraced it wholeheartedly.
While he had never much been one for Christmas lights, when they realised the extent to which the Bundaberg East street decorated for the festive season his daughter asked if he’d be the only “grinch” in the street.
That decided it for Lindsay and for the last four years he has put in a mammoth effort to deliver a spectacular Christmas light display.
As a corner property Lindsay said he had double the frontage but he’s also had double the fun in designing impressive frames that support Christmas trees made from lights.
“We had to step up and join in with it, I quite enjoy it,” Lindsay said.
“We’ve got a temporary fence around the property but then we put a 4.2 m post up from that and the lights come down to form a tree.
“We’ve got five or six of them around the property and that marries in with the large Christmas tree.
“There’s 80 plug ins of power – there’s a lot of lights!
“I’ve got about a kilometre and a half of lights up.”
Interest in the lights is so great that the residents are required to put traffic management signs in place.
He said they usually get about 2000 people looking through the Thomas Healy Christmas lights per week during the festive season.
“We play Christmas carols … we’ve had older people dancing in the street.
“It’s a great environment just to be out listening to music and seeing people enjoy it.”
About 2000 people per week enjoy the Thomas Healy Drive Christmas Lights display 
Lindsay Ford's Christmas light display
Lindsay said for many of the region’s residents visiting the Thomas Healy Christmas lights had become a festive season tradition.
Being able to see the joy it brings to the community was well worth the effort for Lindsay.
“You go out … in the letterbox there’s a handmade card, a letter from some little kid that said ‘thank you very much Mr for putting up the lights,” he said.
“When you stand on the corner and you actually here the comments of people when the whole of the house comes into view – it’s just great to hear how they appreciate it.
“It doesn’t matter to what extent you put up lights.
“Anyone who has made an effort to put up just one string has added to Christmas for people that can’t afford to it.
“There’s a lot of people doing it tough. We obviously can afford to do it and we do it mainly for the kids.”
At this year’s street party Lindsay had one of his new neighbours tell him he chose the house because he wanted to be part of the Thomas Healy Christmas light tradition.
For more Christmas light locations check out Triple M's online map.
- More local lights stories: Wyper Street Christmas lights spread cheer
