MCCALLSBURG, Iowa — Following several weeks of fun, and, at times, intense competition, a winner has been selected in 'Brandon's Battle of the Bulbs' holiday lights contest!
Meet Rick Murray, this year's Christmas lights champion.
Rick lives with this family in McCallsburg, a small town of just over 300 people in northeast Story County.
He and his family decorate their house with thousands of lights every year, making it a so-called 'Christmas hub' in town.
"The people that come by every year and they talk about just how magical it is and how it looks like a toy store or candy store," Rick said. "It just brings back a lot of memories for people."
Their display first started in 2009, and with the help of his neighbors and outside donations, they add something new each year.
It takes a lot of work to make the display come to life.
Rick starts repairing and testing lights in August, and then begins assembling them around the exterior of his house in mid-October.
He takes an entire week off in November to work on the display, and then spends every weekend and every night through Thanksgiving.
There were several incredible entries in 'Brandon's Battle of the Bulbs' contest.
You can watch some of them here:
Here's another entry from Jon Engelen, in Ankeny:
Andy Venzke submitted this entry from their home in Ankeny.