PHOENIX — A Phoenix home known for its magnificent Christmas lights display is shining bright, but not in the same way it has in years past.
Lee Sepanek or “Christmas Lee” is known for bringing a winter wonderland to the desert by decorating every inch of his home in lights and serving hot cocoa to hundreds of people who visit during the holiday season.
The only year Sepanek missed was in 2017 when some neighbors tried to shut him down by complaining to the City of Phoenix.
Sepanek told 12News that health issues forced him to scale back on decorating his home near 44th Street and Camelback Road.
“35 plus years. It’s kind of hard to pull the plug after all that time,” Sepanek said. “It just became evident that I wasn’t physically going to be able to do it this year.”
A lights display as grand as his takes months of work, which Sepanek said he wasn’t able to do this year due to back pain.
However, Sepaenk isn’t letting his street turn dark.
“We still have lights. We just don’t have 250,000,” Sepanek said.
Sepanek used about 10,000 lights to decorate his home and two others on the block.
“It’s still a treat to your eyes just not all on one house,” Sepanek said.
Dozens of cars drove by the home on Thanksgiving night.
“Usually, Thanksgiving night would be a very busy night. You know, this place would be rockin’,” Sepanek said. “They probably think I’m still working on it, but I’m done.”
Sepanek hopes people still drive by and smile at his work, because a scaled back display for “Christmas Lee,” is brighter than many other neighborhoods will see all year.
“It’s become a part of me,” Sepanek said.
Sepanek told 12News he’s looking forward to seeing other homes’ Christmas lights displays for the first time this year.
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12News+ showcases live video throughout the day for breaking news, local news, weather and even an occasional moment of Zen showcasing breathtaking sights from across Arizona.