At the center of it all, Josh Menashe led the crew of workers in getting all the lights that comprise a remarkable Christmas display ready. CLICK THE IMAGE ABOVE TO SEE MORE.--- To download a larger version of the image above click the link
UPDATE: 6:45 pm The lights are now on! See the images at the end of the slide show.
Original post
A crew of men, led by Josh Menashe were a blur of activity at the home of his parents Jack and Linda Menashe at 5605 Beach Drive s.w. where again this year for the 20th time they are putting on a spectacular display for the public.
"There are at least 15,000 more lights in the display this year," said Menashe but he has no idea how many there are total. Building, storing, and adding to the display every year has been a cumulative process with each year getting a little more grand.
As the West Seattle Herald reported last year the home was featured in a television show for the TLC network called Invasion of the Christmas Lights(though this clip does not feature the Menashe home).
It costs about "$3000 to $4000 in electricity," Menashe said but that number will come down as they transition to more LED bulbs. For now it's a mix of older incandescent (which some people think look better) and LED lights.
New this year are two lifesize nutcracker figures on either side of the front door, an indoor Santa who will be displayed in a clear plexiglass case next to the front door. "Dad bought that somewhere in the midwest," Josh said but said the nutcrackers were from Costco. Also new are the additional lights, some new reindeer on the roof and a few random inflatables. Everything is stored on site in a beach house and in the main house taking up a substantial amount of room as you'd imagine.
"We love to do this for the community," said Linda Menashe," they've been so good to us over the years. We love to do it for the children especially."
While it can be a traffic stopper two neighbors walking by said they didn't mind. Chuck and Cathy Larken said, "We think it's beautiful and come to look at it every year. We walk by it every day. They do a great job and every year there's something new," said Cathy.
The lights go on at dusk and stay up until well into the evening. They started at 6 pm Dec. 1 and they will come down January 1.
SPECIAL NOTE:
Santa will be at the Menashe home on Dec. 17 from 5:30 to 8:30 pm for kids to have their photos taken with him...but bring your own camera! If you shoot film, Kits Cameras at Jefferson Square is offering a special discount on processing!
