COLOURS OF CHRISTMAS
Thousands turn out in chilly weather for an impressive Bright Lights Windsor kickoff
Four-year-old Quinton Dufour checks out the colourful Christmas decorations on display at Jackson Park Friday when thousands of people attended the Bright Lights Windsor opening ceremony. For more on the unveiling, see page
The idea of a holiday light festival at Jackson Park may have started with a spark of controversy, but it ended with thousands of smiles bathed in the warm glow of hundreds of thousands of lights.
Mayor Drew Dilkins called on Amazon’s Alexa — an intelligent personal assistant — to first entertain the thousands gathered with a joke before switching on the lights. The crowd counted down to the official lighting of a 64-foot Christmas tree for the inaugural Bright Lights Windsor Friday.
“It’s absolutely beautiful,” said Ron Polsky, who attended with his wife and two grandchildren. “It was money well-spent. Credit to the mayor and those that supported it. He realizes that quality of life isn’t just about money.
“It’s stuff like this that makes Windsor such a livable place.”
The display, which cost $1.5-million, is half the cost of the original proposed display. However, its scaled-back version didn’t seem to lessen the enthusiasm of a crowd that was shoulder to shoulder in spots for the tree-lighting ceremony.
While the towering tree, with its lights dancing in rhythm to holiday and Christmas classics, is the centre of attention, there’s plenty more to catch the eye.
A 40-metre tunnel of blazing white lights lures pedestrians in as they approach off Tecumseh Road near Kennedy Secondary School.
Leaping reindeer, enormous Christmas ornaments, polar bears and leafless trees seemingly ablaze with life once again split the frigid air with a welcoming warm light.
There are also food trucks and horse-drawn carriage rides to tempt the tired or famished.
“This is what Windsor needs, lights like this,” said Meg Butler, who attended with family. “You can see how it brings all these families together. It’s wonderful.”
Picking up on the twin themes of the holidays and Windsor’s diversity, Jackson Park offered holiday traditions and decorations representing many of the city’s cultures.
That was also reflected in the make-up of the crowd as the multicultural face of Windsor turned out in force to celebrate despite the risk of Jack Frost nipping at a few noses.
“Just the amount of lights,” said Chelsea Butler of what caught her eye. “You can see how it’s going to draw so many people in.”
Indeed, even after the tree-lighting ceremony had ended and some were making their way out of the park, a steady stream of people were flowing inward on foot, by car and even by wheelchair.
Mary Mancina, working hard on getting just the right selfie with the giant tree in the background, said the beauty of the lights was beyond words.
“It’s very nicely done,” Mancina said. “It’s a great family event at a time when a lot of people don’t do that as often anymore.
“It was most definitely (worth the money).”
Bright Lights Windsor will run seven nights a week from 6:30 to 10 p.m. until Jan. 7.
Special shows will run on Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights. They begin at 7, 7:45, 8:30 and 9 p.m.