RANCHO CORDOVA, CA (MPG) - Rain distinguished the December 11 opening of the Rancho Cordova Holiday Lights drive-thru experience.  Guests were safely dry in their cars, but volunteers were out in the open. Shelly Blanchard, Cordova Community Council executive director, and numerous volunteers greeted and directed hundreds of individual visitors.

“They were all ages, many with carloads of little children,” Blanchard said. Some kids popped their heads out of the sunroof, rain pounding down on their heads, giggling and waving their souvenir tree wands. Others included masked middle-aged children with their elderly parents. “I met families who had come from as far away as Vacaville, Stockton and Marysville, and saw many Rancho Cordova friends and neighbors,” Blanchard said. “It may not be the holidays we all had been hoping for, but for me, it felt like Christmas.”

The display required more than 600 plug-ins to engineer and thousands of feet of electrical cords. “There’s been so much we couldn’t do this year, that we wanted to end with a bang,” Blanchard said. “I started and then the rest of the team made it better, as is usually the case.”  Blanchard’s “team” consisted of Melody Granger-Mayer, Marie Beckstaiger, Cheryl Gleason, and Lydia Bredin.  Other volunteers assisted.

Santa Claus, aka a former Rancho Cordovan of the Year Wayne Harmer, said “I see the cars when they come by, I got a good spot. I talk to the kids maybe 15-20 seconds so I don’t hold up traffic, and I wish them a Merry Christmas and they drive on through the rest of the lights.”  No sitting on Santa’s knee this year.  Harmer is well known for his help and love for Rancho Cordova events.

Volunteers directed traffic and took tickets and everything was built by volunteers. “It was very impressive, nice to see families going through together,” said volunteer Kevin Sims, a teacher at Cordova High School. He was there on December 11, when it rained. “I was wet, yes,” Sims said. “We had a good time. The spirit of the event is definitely effective.”

Ticket reservations can be made online at https://cordovacouncil.ticketspice.com/rcholidaylights. At that website you can see what and how to donate to the local charities and community groups that are being highlighted at this event. Donations can also be brought to the event for these nonprofits.

The intention from the start was to make this a COVID-19 safe, “family-friendly and affordable holiday excursion to end an awful year with some uplifting seasonal joy,” Blanchard said. The event takes place at the Mineshaft at 2300 Mine Shaft Lane in Rancho Cordova, a property that was donated to the Cordova Community Council in 2018 during the holiday season.

Some sponsors were very involved in their light display. Rancho Cordova Arts’ striking “Let’s Get the pARTy stARTed” display took artist Marsha Mason three months to design, develop, transport and put up. “It’s important to have things the community can do together, and share something really fun and beautiful like this,” Mason said. Two metal artists, Marsh Wildman and John Schuck, built the figures in that display.  Other sponsors were offered ideas, which the Council team carried out.

“The donor (of the property) hoped we would use it to bring fun to our community,” Blanchard said. “It all has come together at this dark moment during a worldwide pandemic, equipping us with the tools we need to spread love, happiness and community. If that is not what this season is all about, I am not sure what is.”  The Council intends to make this an annual event.