Batavia family will compete on season premier of The Great Christmas Light Fight Dec. 5

Batavia resident Brett Foy and his family create the Lights on Ekman display every year, and this year will have a shot at a $50,000 grand prize in a televised competition this year.

The 12th season of ABC’s The Great Christmas Light Fight will air the season premiere episode, featuring Lights on Ekman, at 7 p.m. on Thursday, Dec. 5. The show will be available to stream the following day on Hulu.

In each one-hour episode, four families face off and compete to win $50,000. The displays are judged by the show’s hosts; Carter Oosterhouse and Taniya Nayak.

Lights on Ekman has become a Kane County favorite, now featuring over 70,000 computer controlled LED lights in a display choreographed to music.

The Foy family found out they were going to be contestants last August and the episode was filmed last November at their home at 969 Ekman Drive. Foy said he had been in contact with the show for years before being selected to compete.

The Foy family, including Brett’s three kids, his girlfriend and her kids, all participated in the filming process and have been waiting in suspense for over a year. Foy said part of the magic is that you don’t know who your competition is.

“We’re on the season premiere, which is pretty cool,” Foy said. “There’s lots of anticipation from a lot of people...We’re all excited to see it on TV.”

Lights on Ekman is a constantly evolving display. Foy said he first began decorating his home more than 20 years ago, and shops the clearance bins after Christmas to add to the display every year.

By 2017 the display had about 100,000 lights, but Foy said he was growing bored of the lights on their own and was inspired by Larsen’s Light Show in Pingree Grove to add a musical element in 2018.

“I started looking into what we could do that would be more engaging,” Foy said. “Every year since, it has just gotten bigger and bigger.”

The display is synced to a playlist of over 20 songs, making the full show about an hour and 15 minutes long. Foy uses his own FM transmitter, which allows guests to tune in from up to a block away.

Foy said the display changes every year with new lights, props and songs, so the display seen on TV this week will look slightly different from the display this year’s guests will see.

Lights on Ekman also features a Halloween themed display every October before converting to Christmas. This year the Christmas display opened in November and will run every day from dusk until 9 p.m. on weekdays to 10 p.m. on weekends until Jan 1.

Carter Oosterhouse was the host that came to film the Batavia display. Foy said the filming process happened so fast that it was a blur, but he enjoyed sharing his passion with Oosterhouse, who has a background in carpentry.

“The host doesn’t really ever see the house before they come film the show,” Foy said. “Getting to experience that with Carter– interacting with him and getting to walk him through and share the joy that I have building the light show was fun.”

The Great Christmas Light Fight executive producers Felicia Aaron White and Max Swedlow said this season is one of their best yet, and is made extra special by the variety of displays, from traditional to high tech and all different sizes.

The producers said the Foy family made great contestants for the season premiere.

“The Foy family was a dream to work with! Their synchronized light show was meticulous, tasteful, and all about family,” White and Swedlow said in an email. “Brett seamlessly blended cutting-edge technology with never-before-seen innovative DIY. The Foy family could sure give Santa’s North Pole elves some tips that would blow their minds!”

White and Swedlow said all of their contestants share a deep love for their community and Christmas, and noted that extreme decorating is a significant financial, emotional, and time commitment.

“They all do it for their community,” White and Swedlow said in an email. “Most also describe their love of Christmas as their sole interest and hobby. They eat, sleep, and breathe Christmas year-round. When they’re not decorating, they’re planning next year’s decorations. Saturdays, they spend tinkering on Christmas in their garages, and that’s their happy place. They wouldn’t have it any other way.”

Foy said each night they see about 100 cars, though he is eager to see if there is an increase in visitors after the episode airs.

“It was a great experience, something you do once probably in your life,” Foy said. “It was a fantastic experience for the kids.”

Foy said the questions he most often gets asked about the display are what he has spent on it and how much electricity he uses, to which he replies; “Enough.” He said since all of the lights are LED, he doesn’t see a noticeable increase in his December electric bills.

Foy said he has the best neighbors anyone in his hobby could ask for. He said he thinks some of them legitimately enjoy the show, and others are extraordinarily tolerant.

“I’ve never had a complaint, I’ve never had an issue with my neighbors, and that’s unusual in this hobby,” Foy said. “My neighbors understand what we do here, which is bringing joy to the community and lighting up the dark.”

Foy said this season can be difficult. He said as it gets dark earlier and people get seasonal affective disorder or just aren’t happy with the way things are in the world, he feels that his display offers everyone a bit of respite.

“This is just one little bright spot where you can come and unplug and just turn on your radio and enjoy something that’s totally disconnected from everything that’s happening in the wold,” Foy said. “It’s all about joy. It’s all about making people be happy.”

The Foys use their display to give back to the community, by handing out candy canes and collecting donations. For the past five years, they have raised about $4,000-5,000 each year for the Batavia Mother’s Club Foundation, a local charity organization that benefits women and children in the community.

The Foys will host a watch party on Thursday at Pal Joey’s in Batavia which will also benefit the Mothers Club. Tickets to attend cost $20 per adult and $10 per child, and all ticket sales will benefit the Mother’s Club.