FOND DU LAC, Wis. — In Fond du Lac, Kayden Bebow starts preparing for Christmas in the summer.
"I'm definitely not the Grinch on the street—I'm probably the Griswold on the street," Bebow, 18, said. "There's lots of people that are like, 'Wait till after Thanksgiving!' But I'm like, 'Nope, can't.'"
The early start is so that Bebow can make sure he's ready for his yearly light display in his front yard.
"Every year this is like, I want to make it better and better, like adding things, like donating to the food pantry, and now this year I've collected for the Salvation Army at the same time," Bebow said.
Last year, the "Bebow Family Light Show" brought in $2,000 and 800 pounds of food for the Fondy Food Pantry, Bebow said. It was donated by people driving past the display. This year, he hopes to collect even more, and is also collecting for the Fond du Lac Salvation Army.
The show is coordinated to 20 different Christmas songs, which play outside the family's yard and on a radio frequency set up by Bebow.
For the family, the lights are about more than just being merry and bright.
"It's also a memory of my dad because he like loves Christmas time," Kenzie Bebow, Kayden's sister, said.
Kayden and Kenzie's father died in December 2014. The following year, Kayden began the light show.
"He always used to light up our big tree over there," he said. "So I wanted to keep creating and doing my entire house."
Kayden's mom Lisa Carlson-Bebow said she's amazed by the work her son does every year.
"Kayden always remembered his dad doing some things with lights and he started out real small, and now it's just grown into this, just, unbelievable display and he just makes it bigger and better every year," Carlson-Bebow said. "And I'm just so proud of him."
Bebow said the lights are a way to feel closer to his dad.
"He would think that it's all good and he’d be happy," Bebow said.
You can catch the show on W5128 Kennedy Dr. in Fond du Lac, and check out the Bebow Family Light Show Facebook page for ways to donate.
