LEBANON, Pa. — Fourth Street in Lebanon was full of holiday cheer Sunday night, with children laughing and people passing by Lebanon natives Dean and Deb Willeman’s home.
The light display dean has built up over the years decks the neighborhood in holiday style, as it has been for nearly four decades.
"We have people that came here when they were kids." Dean Willeman said. "Now they're bringing their kids and their grandkids to come and see this every year."
The Lebanon natives held their eighth annual Community Night to give back to their neighbors for the years of support.
"We've gotten kids tapping on the door at night or the window saying 'Thank you' you know, ‘we love the lights.'" Deb Willeman said. "They’ll point up and smile."
Family and friends handed out gifts to kids in the community, who wrote Christmas cards to send overseas to local service members.
"This year, we did 150 gift bags for 2-to-12-year-old girls and boys," Deb Willeman said. "We have 40 plus gift bags for 13 and 14 year olds and we made about a dozen gift bags for babies."
The couple gets few donations from family, but most of the funds for the event come from Dean and Deb themselves.
Families also met with Santa while enjoying the lights and live Christmas music.
"I’ve seen it go from a little bit of light to a lot of lights," Lebanon resident Andrea said. "It’s amazing to see."
"This is what we need," Lebanon resident Sean Nagle said. "The spirit is amazing."
The Willeman’s say Christmas on Fourth Street is their way of making the season bright.
"It just kept getting bigger and bigger every year," Willeman said. "We just figure it’s a way to give back to the community."
Much of the spectacle is homemade, cut from wood by Dean and painted by Deb.
The Willieman's say community night helps them give directly to the city.
"It's better to give back to the community than giving it to all these other charities," Dean Willeman said. "The money we would normally give the charities we do it right here in the city of Lebanon."
Christmas on Fourth Street will be on display through January 4.