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Waikele street’s yule display earns a spot on TV program

Nina Wu
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WAIKELELIGHTS.COM

The popular Christmas-decorated street in Waikele will be featured on ABC’s “The Great Christmas Light Fight,” 7 p.m. Monday.

A spectacular synchronized lights-and-music show will be on display at Anapau Place in Waikele, part of a neighborhood Christmas tradition. But this time, there’s a $50,000 prize at stake.

Fourteen homes on Anapau Place are vying to win ABC’s “The Great Christmas Light Fight” in an episode that airs 7 p.m. Monday. The Waikele neighborhood will compete against neighborhoods in Celebration, Fla., and Gilbert, Ariz.

Show producers saw a YouTube video of the Waikele display and contacted Keith Yoshida, who has been decorating his home for more than 20 years. Their “audition” in July involved a phone interview and video submission.

“We’re representing Hawaii,” said Yoshida, a vice president at Mid-Pac Petroleum. “Hawaii always does its best. The show is going to feature what I would say are some unique things about Hawaii.”

In all, they used about 80,000 lights, significantly more than last year when nine houses participated. More than 5 miles of electrical wiring were installed in September and a TV crew filmed the display in October. The annual public display opened the day after Thanksgiving.

“It was quite an experience,” he said. “We’re a close-knit neighborhood, but this bonded us even closer together and gave us an opportunity to rally around a common goal.”

The Yoshida family, including Keith’s wife, Nalani, and kids, Nevin, 21, and Kaylin, 19, helped out and are featured on the TV show.

Yoshida began his foray into Christmas decorations with a few strands of lights on his lanai, but it eventually became a year-round project. He started synchronizing with neighbors about five years ago. Spectators began donating money, which Yoshida gave to charity.

Last year, about $1,500 was donated and passed on to the Next Step homeless shelter in Kakaako, the Hawaiian Humane Society and PATCH. This year’s charities have not been selected.

The LED light show is powered in part by 230 solar panels on some homes in the neighborhood, which helps offset electricity costs. The lights dance to 18 songs, with nine per night looped every 38 minutes to keep the crowds moving.

If the Anapau Place neighborhood wins on Monday, the prize will be shared among the 14 households. And win or lose, the light show will go on, from 7 to 9:30 p.m. daily until Jan. 8. (The street will be closed to traffic during those hours.)

There will be no light show Monday, however, when “The Great Christmas Light Fight” airs. Visit waikelelights.com.

5 responses to “Waikele street’s yule display earns a spot on TV program”

  1. MahinaB says:

    This street is a major irritant to the rest of the Waikele community. Their flashing light show brings traffic, noise, litter, crime, property/landscape damage and illegal parking to the entire neighborhood, and they are well aware how it affects others. It will be even worse now with this national exposure. It’s a shame that their narcissism makes the entire community suffer during the holiday season.

  2. WizardOfMoa says:

    These neighbors are already winners rather they win the prize money or not. Getting together to put out a display for all to enjoy is the epitome of the Christmas spirit. The few disgruntled people will always find the worse in others regardless any given situation. What’s a few nights out of the norm? The joy and delights of the crowd speaks volume! Mahalo to all the families participating – hope you win the grand prize!

    • MahinaB says:

      Yeah, I’m disgruntled, but I am one of many, not just a few. A couple nights out of the norm would be great;a whole month is a different story. Anapau Place is located in a quiet golf course community of cul-de-sacs;the size of this flashing light show and the attending problems is simply overwhelming the neighborhood. Along with “joys and delights”, the crowd is trampling our lawns, stealing/breaking our own decorations, and stuffing their trash in our mailboxes and hedges. Enough already.

  3. csdhawaii says:

    Very cool…good luck, I will be watching!

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