You could call him the Clark Griswold of Burnaby.
Joel DuPlessis has been wowing passersby with his Christmas light display for more than three decades, and this year is no exception.
The DuPlessis family home will be lit between 4:30 and 11:30 p.m. every day until Jan. 8., and everyone is welcome to come check it out.
New to the display are two drumming soldiers, a five-foot-tall flamingo, Rudolph, two peacocks and Snoopy on a sleigh. Making its return is the 23-foot tree, a 14-foot Santa peeking over the roof, snowmen, polar bears and so much more. In total, there are upwards of 40,000 lights.
“I stopped counting,” DuPlessis said jokingly, during an interview with NOW.
The passion project started when DuPlessis was just 16 years old. He had read a Christmas display book and decided it was something he wanted to do.
“I built a sleigh and reindeer in my basement for my family home,” he recalled. “It went on. Eventually, it didn’t quite work anymore, so I modified and kept adding to the house, and then when we moved to Burnaby, it was with my wife and daughters. It was more just to really push the spirit of Christmas.”
DuPlessis, an electrical technologist with B.C. Hydro, said setting up the display takes between two and three weeks. It requires him to take time off work and put in 12 to 16-hour days. But this season was a little trickier than others because he was out of town.
“I had three really good friends that came by, and basically in two days, we got a ton of things out of my shed and from under my deck. … Then we got it all plugged in as of last Friday,” he said, adding the lights are all controlled through a computer on more than 100 channels.
Asked what the family’s hydro bill is during the month of December, DuPlessis said “it’s probably up there.” (The home is on a 12-equal payment plan.)
DuPlessis noted he’s had a host of visitors over the years, both young and old. One time, his elementary school teacher stopped by.
“That was kind of cool,” he said. “I’ve had full tour buses, church groups. It’s people like that.”
The holiday display is also a fundraiser for B.C. Children’s Hospital. The family has been collecting donations – via a donation bin out front – since moving into their Burnaby home in 2000. Last year, they raised more than $1,200.
“They helped us with our kids when they were young, and they also helped my nephew. I felt it was a worthwhile cause to give back, and Christmas is about kids, too,” said DuPlessis, adding donations over $20 are eligible for a tax receipt.
A self-proclaimed perfectionist, DuPlessis said the light display is his art and something he takes great pride in.
“When it’s done, it’s my presentation. It’s my art piece for the year.”
The house is located at 8222 Burnlake Dr.
