By ANEEKA SIMONIS
PLENTY of oohhs and aahhs can be heard after dark in one Beaconsfield street lit with “thousands upon thousands” of Christmas lights during the month of December.
Residents at Brookevale Close in Beaconsfield have kicked up their festive spirit in their street, with close to a dozen homes decorated with Christmas cheer.
But there is one stand-out home that attracts most passers-by.
The two-storey home – complete with a purpose bought ute decorated with lights and Christmas paintings – is turning heads.
Resident Michael Browne spends a month getting the Christmas display just right.
He said he struggles to get his kids to bed when the house is alight, as the buzz outside the home makes its way in.
“The kids love it. They don’t want to go to bed … they just want to see the lights on each night,” the dad laughed.
“It’s a really joyful street.”
Mr Browne has been injecting Christmas cheer into the street since 2002, taking a short break in 2009-2012, before bringing back his best displays yet.
In previous years, an inflatable Combi van was decorated with Christmas lights. Unfortunately, a Christmas Grinch “helped themselves” to the decoration – so Mr Browne went out and bought a Holden ute to take its place.
The display not only lights up the lives of residents in the neighbourhood, it also touches those state-wide.
For the past three years, a wishing well has been placed out the front of the Brookevale Close home to collect donations for the Peter MacCallum Cancer Foundation.
Touched by the cancer personally, Mr Browne’s yearly collection has helped raise over $1000 for the centre.
“Hopefully it will get bigger this year,” he said, referring to the donations that have already been made this Christmas season.
