Fourteen homes participated in decorating contest, one spot
hosts a Christmas wonderland, Santa included, and bags first
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Gilroy – Santa Claus isn’t coming to town. He’s already here, and he’s hanging out on La Sierra Way, handing out popcorn and taking notes on children’s Christmas wishes.
For the past few nights, several dozen families have stopped by 621 La Sierra Way to chat with Mr. and Mrs. Claus (AKA Ruben and Marty Trujillo – don’t tell the kids) and take in the zany decorations at their home. A miniature ferris wheel bearing puppets spins on one side of the lawn; on the other, a train on home-made tracks circles a tree with upside-down candy canes hanging from the branches. On the roof, Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer is taking flight into the night sky.
The Trujillos put on such a good show this year that they’ve won the city’s annual home decorating contest. The prize is $100, but they don’t do it for the money.
“All my kids are grown,” Ruben Trujillo said. “They’re either young adults or teenagers. I do it for the little ones to come by, for their expressions. I like to see their excitement. There are older people who come by and have the same reaction.”
The Trujillos have experimented with different themes for the past five years – Reindeer in training, candy cane lane, a Christmas carnival.
This year, the family hit a home run with the “Getting ready for Christmas” theme, said resident Kathy Craig, who was touring the lights with her daughter and the foreign exchange student they’re hosting.
“It’s so fun,” she said of the Trujillo house. “We took pictures with Santa and you have Rudolph in the sky. Where else do you get that?”
The Trujillos have put together a delight for the kids. Adults may find themselves equally amazed by Michael Osler’s tribute to the 12 Days of Christmas at his home at 731 Lexington Place. The lawn at his home is filled with home-made decorations representing each day, and a spotlight shines on each in sync with the song.
Osler spent a year cutting out the decorations and countless hours syncing the music up with the lights to produce a 16-minute show. Visitors can watch the whole show and enjoy the music from the warmth of their cars by tuning the radio to 89.5 FM.
“I’ve gotten a big following,” Osler said. “I’ve already had hundreds of cars stop by. It’s really nice.”
The Grinch stole third prize this year by staying loyal to a theme and going easy on the lights. Blue orbs hang from the branches of a tree in the yard of Jim and Linda Wanslow, who live at the end of Falcon Court. Stars twinkle on the roof, and a green Grinch is making his way down the chimney. On Wednesday night, Linda Maslow was out in her Grinch costume, handing out hot chocolate and making sure visitors didn’t miss the little surprises around the house.
Peek in the mailbox and you’ll see a spider caught in a spotlight. Cindy Lou Who – her neighbor’s 6-year-old daughter Tiffani Weberg – made sure visitors didn’t miss the mole burrowing around the bushes.
Here, too, visitors can listen to Christmas carols by tuning to an FM station.
“I liked it because she carried the theme throughout and even involved the neighbor,” said Susan Jacobsen, one of the roughly 10 contest judges and an employee of Starritt Realty, the business that sponsored the competition. “It wasn’t overdone. It wasn’t gaudy. It’s just little things you had to walk around and see.”
The competition was close this year, Jacobsen said, and just a few points separated the top finishers from each other. Judges graded each home based on originality, creativity, design and materials.
In addition to the three winners, several homes were standouts this year, including the home of Carolyn Silva, at the corner of Fifth and Hannah streets. In addition to an expansive lawn draped in cotton cloth, visitors will find Santa and his elves busy at work on toys, Mrs. Claus baking cookies in her kitchen, and ginger men and polar bears frolicking in the snow.
For a vintage oldies Christmas, stop by the home of Larry Pierotti at 7185 Orchard Dr. A bucket of candy canes greets visitors as they approach his garage, decked out with a life-sized Elvis mannequin, a miniature corvette and a slew of ’50s paraphernalia.
Pierotti’s neighbors have also pulled out the stops for the competition, making it one of the best-lit neighborhoods in the city.
The 14 homes in the decorating contest are worth visiting, but residents shouldn’t be afraid to wander off the beaten path. The holiday spirit has transformed rooftops and lawns across Gilroy into a patchwork of illuminated landmarks, and some of the best finds are in cul-de-sacs and side streets, where some neighbors have teamed up to create a common theme.
“We’ll have to up the ante next year,” Jacobsen said, “and do a neighborhood contest.”
