You may have seen my Facebook post or one of my Tweets, but one of my favorite champions of celiac disease research, Alek Komarnitsky, has done it again. His well-known holiday light show is back and live, entertaining viewers while raising funds for the University of Maryland Center for Celiac Research. (See also my friend Tiffany’s write-up on Celiac-Disease.com.)
From the comfort of your computer you can control more than 20,000 lights on Alek’s Colorado home. You can inflate and deflate enormous inflatables — Homer Simpson, the Frosty family, and many more — all from the website. I met Alek and his family while teaching a gluten-free cooking class in Colorado this summer. They’re great people who share my commitment to advancing celiac research. Alek’s idea of controllable holiday lights began a few years ago and has already helped raise $50,000 for celiac research.
Don’t just take my word for it — read Alek’s letter below to learn more about the lights and the cause. Watch the webcams, enjoy the show, and if you’d like, consider making a donation to support celiac research. Alek even has a special message for readers who arrive via my blog.
Happy holidays!
~jules
PS — Alek also keeps a blog you might enjoy if you’re browsing during the day. Check out post #308 about my Colorado cooking class this year.
Dear Jules,
Yes, it’s the holiday season, and back online for 2010 are the Controllable Christmas Lights for Celiac Disease.
Once again, three live webcams and X10 technology let visitors not only watch but actually control more than 20,000 lights. New this year are a Santa plane, a Santa helicopter, and Santa skiing down the roof — all inflatable and controllable — in addition to a giant 12′ Santa, a 15′ Santa balloon, Elmo, the Frosty family, SpongeBob SquarePants, and Homer Simpson.
The website is free and fun, and it’s one of my creative ways to raise awareness and request donations for celiac disease — a cause that’s personal to me because both of my sons have the condition. Donations can be made directly to the University of Maryland Center for Celiac Research. To date, the project has helped raise over $50,000.
People from around the world enjoy the lights (visitors from 157 countries last year), and environmental concerns are addressed: viewers can turn the lights off with a mouse click, and this is the seventh year I’ve used wind power to help run the display. I’ve also made a carbon offset contribution for the roughly 0.6 tons of CO2 associated with about a megawatt-hour of power used — comparable to one cross-country flight. Webcams also reduce the need to drive around to see holiday lights in person, which cuts fossil-fuel use.
Still, the modest daily electricity cost is worth the joy the display brings to families and children, whether they see it in person or online. There’s even a high-definition option — gather family, pour some eggnog, and enjoy the show as chestnuts roast on an open fire.
Stop by the site, tell your friends, and spread the word via blogs, Facebook, or Twitter.
Merry Christmas and HO-HO-HO!
alek