Archbishop's web site Denver Catholic Register Parishes Catholic Pastoral Center
December 5, 2001
Kloewer's home is glowing for Christmas
Retired couple's colossal light display inspired by grandchildren
By Rory King
There could be an energy crisis brewing — not because of oil, or California's rolling blackouts, but because of — Christmas lights?
Over 25,000 to be exact, but that's not all. The Dick and Alice Kloewer Christmas lights display at their Englewood home also includes 60 display cases, 20 electric motors moving everything from dancing Barbies, to Curious George riding a bicycle on a tight rope, to a Ferris wheel. The gargantuan exhibit draws a whopping 100 amps on 14 different circuits. Dick said one person who saw the display said, "What would possess anybody to go to this extent?"
With a laugh, the couple said in unison, "Grandchildren."
For 19 years the Kloewers, along with their five children and now five in-laws and eight grandchildren, have been setting up this monster exhibit.
"It takes 300 man-hours to set it up," Dick said. "The whole family helps out."
They start the first of November and have it all done by Thanksgiving.
Everything about the display says Christmas: from the colossal nativity scene with an illuminated "Peace on the Earth" sign above it, to the more secular reindeer pulling St. Nick's sled. Music, too, is integral to the show. During the Register's visit, the Kloewer's display featured good old country Christmas carols belted out by George Strait.
Though the 300 man-hours are hard to fathom, the work begins long before that, Dick said. Dick builds all of the display cases and moving parts in his garage. Most of the components are made from old bicycles.
"People in the neighborhood leave old bikes in my driveway because they know I'll use them," he said, adding that he uses the chains and motors from old garage door openers as well.
The display is quite impressive. Such is the case with the lighted Ferris wheel. Instead of letting the light cable wrap itself around the axle, Dick fashioned a brass ring to fit inside of a drum. He then placed metal brushes touching the ring to pass the electricity from a power cord to the lights strung along the Ferris wheel.
"That's one of the things you can't see unless I explain it to you," Dick said as he led the Register on a tour of the illuminated wonder.
Lights and gadgets are everywhere, including up in the trees.
"Those are made out of paper ketchup cups," Dick said pointing to the large balls of light in one tree. "There are 50 cups on each one, and each cup has its own light."
Perhaps most impressive is the train, which is up all year, Dick said, explaining that he belongs to a model railroad club. The train has six different runs on 700 feet of track. It also has a mountain built of rock and mortar that is complete with track snaking along the side and a tunnel through the middle. He generally runs between three and eight trains and can drive the trains directly into the garage via an opening no bigger than a doggy door in the side of the building.
All year long, Dick and Alice look for new ideas for their exhibit. They got the inspiration to do a Harley-Davidson display case from a vacation in Las Vegas. There is an Elvis display inspired by Dick's time in the service with him.
"I like when you see a couple come up because the lady wants to see, but the man is grumbling and he doesn't want to be there," Dick said. "But then, by the end of the night, he is smiling with the rest of the people."
Alice said a diverse mass of people come to see their lights, including retirement communities, neighbors — who Alice said love their display — and Boy Scout troops.
Parishioners of All Souls Church for 26 years, the couple said that many fellow parishioners stop by to visit the display, including the venerable Msgr. Thomas Barry, who at 96 is the oldest priest in the diocese. Msgr. Barry said that he stops by to see the lights two or three times each holiday season.
"I think it's the most gorgeous light display I ever saw," he said, adding that he frequently takes visitors with him to see the exhibit. "It takes a championship every year. It's something everyone should see if they can."
The display continues to grow because Christmas is "the most important time of the year" for the couple, Dick said.
"It's the birth of our Saviour," he said.
And that is what is most impressive about the Kloewer's effort, Msgr. Barry said.
"It reminds me that nobody puts that much work into anybody else's birthday except Jesus Christ's," he said.
For those interested in seeing the lights, the Kloewer home is at 4990 S. Elati St. in Englewood, on the corner of Elati and Grand streets. The display is lit from 5 p.m. to 10 p.m. through New Years Day, except the week before Christmas, when it is illuminated until midnight.
Contact Us
