Patsy Ford looked outside her front window one evening last week and saw a young boy bouncing around on the snow in her front yard, looking with wonder at all the Christmas lights that decorate her and Kevin Ford’s home.

Patsy went outside to join the boy and his parents, and told the young Christmas enthusiast the reason the Fords decorate their home every year with a plethora of decorations is for kids exactly like him.

Well, kids and the young at heart, Patsy said.

The Fords started hanging Christmas lights around their house 30 years ago, when they lived in Steamboat Springs.

“We started like everybody else,” Kevin said. “You know, a string of lights here or there.”

Soon though, the Fords began buying lights and decorations in after-Christmas sales at local stores.

Things really took off when their daughter was born. They wanted to encourage her to love the holiday season as much as they do.

When the Fords moved in 2002 to their current house at 903 Oak Drive, in northeast Durango, they continued to build their collection of lights and began to establish a reputation as one the most well-lit houses in Durango from December to January.

The Fords put their lights up each year after Thanksgiving. It usually takes about 40 hours, although, Kevin said, while chuckling, each year it seems to be taking a little longer as he gets older.

The decorations come complete with a Santa doll, Snoopy and Santa with his reindeer on the roof of their house. On occasion, passersby will be treated to Christmas music and a laser light show that projects cartoon-like images on the white garage door.

Last year, they even had a live couple dressed as Santa and Mrs. Claus sit around a fire for a couple of nights in their front yard. Passing children were quite excited by the guest appearances.

Despite the amount of decorations the couple has, they still frequent Kroegers Ace Hardware so often around the holiday season that many of the employees have come to inquire about how the Fords are decorating their house each year. Even though they are adding to their collection, Kevin’s favorite string of lights is the first one they bought: the string of snowflakes that hang from a tree near the walkway to their front door.

For Kevin, decorating each year is all about fostering connections within the community.

“I like to share the season with the community. I enjoy providing light in the darkness of winter,” he said.

Patsy echoed his sentiment.

“It’s about the spirit, the light and the joy,” Patsy said.

The Fords delight in seeing other people’s decorations as much as sharing their own. Each Christmas Eve, they drive around Durango and check out all the different ways people decorate their homes with Christmas lights.

Even though they’ve been working on their decorations for 30 years, it’s anything but a competition for the two. The more people with lights the better; they love to see full neighborhoods lit up.

It’s common during the month of December for passersby to stop on the sidewalk or slow down as they drive by the Fords’ house to soak in the light. This year will be a little different as the Fords will have less interaction with visitors as they try to be safe during the pandemic, but from inside their house, they can share the gift of light with the community as they hear the gasps of wonder and squeals of excitement.

smarvin@durangoherald.com