Nick Barker and Sienna Tovey.
The Illabo Christmas lights brightened up the area on December 9, and they will continue until December 25 from 8:30pm to 10:30pm on Howell Street.
The display has moved next door this year so visitors have been asked to park on the off street parking area available on site.
The lights are viewed by hundreds each year. It is also asked that all visitors please stay on the lit pathways to avoid tripping over cords and to be careful of the decorations to avoid any damages.
Santa mail is continuing the same as other years, you can drop off a letter to Santa in the silver mailbox at the front of our display or post a letter to Santa at Santas’ Depot Illabo NSW 2590 to receive a free personalised letter (not just a name change) back from Santa. See the pinned post on Christmas In The Junee Shire Facebook page for more details.
They will also be collecting donations this year for Lake Road Vet Rescue which is run through Lake Road Vet in Wagga and Lake Road Vet on Broadway in Junee.
Bank details will be available on site to make a quick transfer donation or you can drop some cash into the collection bucket near the entrance to the display. Alternatively you can use the details below to donate anytime you want -Rescue Angel Fund Bendigo Bank BSB: 633 000 Account: 182 091 587. Please add “Illabo Christmas Lights” into the description section when making a bank transfer donation.
Mel Barker said, “Illabo Christmas lights is a walk through display that we have been doing for the last few years. When we originally moved here six and a half years ago we did a display, but we realised it was a bit hard to see from the street with how much we had up. From then we made it a walk through display and it’s been a lot easier for people to come in and see the different things that we have up.
“In some of the years, depending on kid sages that come through, some kids go really quickly and are not really looking and the parents are still trying to have a look.
For kids like that we have started asking them questions like how many koalas can you see or how many Santas and things like that. It makes them enjoy the display a little bit more as they are actually looking at it a bit more.
“We try and do different questions depending on the age of the child.
“We’ve had teenagers come through and they want to be challenged with questions as well, so we have come up with levels of difficulty for them to make it a little bit more of an interactive display.
“I find a lot of people now seem to spend a little bit more time walking around, even though it’s not that long of a path to walk around, people seem to stay and look and enjoy it a bit more when they are looking at more details.
“This year we have tried to change it up abit as we’ve moved to our blocks next door to make the path a different shape and to put things in different locations, which has added some other problems of how to we have some lights at heights when we don’t have anything there to put lights on and we have had to work on a few logistical things.
“We have also had to change a few things as we’ve been putting things up because of the weather that we have had.“We have had damages and breakages and things that have already been thrown out that we have already put up this year and have already taken down because of the weather, which is unfortunate, but I think most of December is going to be like this.
“I know other people that do displays are having the same problem, no matter where they are in NSW, they are still working on displays and I think we will be working on the display the whole month when the weather keeps changing.
“We are doing the best we can and keeping everything as planned as we could have or changing things when it goes wrong with the weather.
“This year for the first year we have decided to do a donation bucket.“Viewing is from 8.30pm to 10.30pm, but best time is after 9:00pm for the solar lights to be on. We are aware that young children are usually not out that late, so most of the display this year is powered, so it will still be nice at 8:30pm for the younger ones, but to have everything on will be from 9pm onwards.”
-Jack Murray
