WITH 687,000 CHRISTMAS LIGHTS, A NEW YORK FAMILY BREAKS THEIR OWN GUINNESS WORLD RECORD

The massive displays are created by Tim Gay, Grace Gay, and their three grown children. After the addition of animation in 2007, it began to gain popularity among visitors.

“It always felt pretty cool being a part of something so big. It’s really been a gift to see that happen over time, to start something small where it felt more personal and intimate as our family tradition, and then grow it into a tradition for so many people in the community,” said daughter Emily Gay.

“I grew up in a family of eight children and she made the holidays magical for the whole family,” he told the Albany Times-Union. “From Thanksgiving to New Years, it was like Grand Central Station in our house. It was very special to us.”

Embracing technology runs in the family. Tim and Grace met at IBM in 1984, when they both were engineers. Tim still works there today while Grace has moved on, currently pursuing a Ph.D in nursing. Their passion for STEM was passed on to their children: both of their sons followed in their parents’ engineering footsteps, while Emily took engineering classes in college but ultimately majored in chemistry.

Many pieces in the display are coded to exhibit a light show in synchronization with music that visitors can hear by tuning their car radio to 95.3 FM. Tim said they cycle through 250 uplifting and holiday songs, and each took them around 20 hours to program.

Because most of the lights are LEDs, Tim said costs remain lower than most would think. Over the month, his electricity bill is around $350 — a drop in the bucket given the amount of joy it inspires, he says.