Lighting up home, yard a big part of holiday for many
By Joey Pitchford
Published in News on December 24, 2016 12:31 PM
jpitchford@newsargus.com
PIKEVILLE -- Tucked away in a small neighborhood near Pikeville, George Bell and Carman Ballance are each bringing their own style to Christmas spirit.
The two neighbors, who live across from each other on Lancaster Street, go all out each year to decorate their front yards for the season. Each, however, does so in his own way -- Bell's focus is on lights and hand-crafted decorations, while Ms. Ballance fills her yard with dozens of inflatables.
For each of the 27 years Bell has lived in his home off Lancaster Road, he has decorated his front yard with a menagerie of Christmas decorations that he created himself. From Santa and elves to reindeer and decorated Christmas balls, Bell's holiday decor stands out among the homes around his, with lights woven throughout and Christmas-themed signs sitting at the front of his driveway.
Bell said Christmas decorating was something he grew up with. His father decorated his childhood home, and after Bell had children of his own, he decided to carry on that tradition.
"I just love Christmas," he said. "I do this every year, and every year I try to put a bit more out."
Ms. Ballance has been decorating with inflatable figures for around a decade, but has been doing so at her current home for three years. She said the impetus for her decoration came from the neighborhood children.
"It's nice that we (she and Bell) do this, because nobody else decorates," she said. "I love to see the 'oohs' and 'aahs.' There was a little boy driving by with his dad with the window down, and he kept saying, 'Look at that one, Daddy,' and 'Pull back around, Daddy!' That kind of reaction gives you the motivation to keep it up."
Bell is not a craftsman by trade, but he has taught himself over the years to make decorations by cutting out patterns from sheets of wood.
"I'll get patterns, there are places you can get patterns through the mail, for some of that stuff," he said, referencing the decorations. "Some of it I just think of out of my clear blue, so I cut it out and say 'hey, that looks pretty good.'"
As Bell has gotten older, he has included his family in the decorating process. With six children, 11 grandchildren and four great-grandchildren, there has been no shortage of willing participants every time holiday season rolls around.
"They all love it," he said. "They come out in the yard saying 'paw-paw, this is so cool, you made this.'"
Ms. Ballance has around 36 inflatables in her yard this year, part of what she has called a "friendly competition" between herself and some of Bell's grandchildren. Her decorations this year feature a 20-foot inflatable Santa Claus.
Bell's front yard fills up more and more each year, to the point where Bell has now lost track of how many decorations he rolls out each year. Diabetes forced him to have a bone in his left foot surgically removed, which has left him unable to reach some of the places he has before. With his family helping him out, however, the display continues to grow.
"I told my wife we're going to have to start building up on pedestals," he said with a laugh. "As long as my kids and grandkids are willing to do it, we'll keep on doing it."