The Foy family decorates their home for Christmas every year with different light displays that sync with music on an FM radio channel.
Dominic Di Palermo for Shaw Local News Network
Batavia resident Brett Foy and his family create the Lights on Ekman display every year, and now they will have a shot at a $50,000 grand prize in a televised competition.
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 next day on Hulu.
In each one-hour episode, four families face off to win $50,000. The displays are judged by show hosts Carter Oosterhouse and Taniya Nayak.
The Foy family poses with Carter Oosterhouse, center, outside their Christmas display, Lights on Ekman, in Batavia during the filming of ABC’s “The Great Christmas Light Fight” in November 2023.
Courtesy of ABC
Lights on Ekman has become a Kane County favorite. It features more than 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 began decorating his home more than 20 years ago, and shops the clearance bins after Christmas to add to the display.
The Foy family decorates their home for Christmas each year. They will appear on ABC’s “The Great Christmas Light Fight” for the display at 969 Ekman Drive in Batavia.
Dominic Di Palermo for Shaw Local News Network
By 2017, the display had roughly 100,000 lights. However, Foy said he was growing bored of the lights alone. He 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 what 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 who 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 the Foy family made great contestants for the season premiere.
“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.”
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.”
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.
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.
