Illuminated Christmas Tree Balls Unite Bridgewater Community During Holidays
BRIDGEWATER, NJ — When driving through this Bridgewater neighborhood be sure to look up. It’s not a plane or a drone! It’s hundreds of lighted handcrafted Christmas balls hanging in trees bringing cheer during the holidays.
The annual unique tradition was started by Dewey and Leslie Carlson, who moved to Bridgewater in 2018. They started hanging these Christmas balls — made of strings of LED lights attached to chicken wire to create a sphere— from trees on their property.
It slowly caught on with about 25 neighbors now participating along the Southbrook Drive and Cornell Road neighborhood in the Martinsville section of the Township.
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The end result is something magical —”a fairy tale environment,” said Eric Fox, who is one of the neighbors who participates in the tradition.
The Carlsons were inspired to make the Christmas tree balls after living in North Caroline. While living there they encountered the Smith family in Greensboro who had the entire neighborhood participating with thousands of balls.
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“It was amazing,” said Carlson.
As the Carlsons hung their Christmas balls, neighbors began to inquire about them.
“The neighbors were intrigued. We held a workshop to teach them how to build them, and, more importantly, how to hang them,” said the Carlsons.
Hanging the balls is the tricky part. The Carlsons and Fox both noted that neighbors come up with some creative ways to get the Christmas decor high up in the trees. From potato guns, slingshots, fishing rods, and even a Nerf bow and arrow.
Now more than five years later, the neighborhood showcases more than 240 balls in the trees. Each year the neighbors kick off the season as they come together at the beginning of December to have an annual lighting ceremony and bonfire.
The lights then remain through New Year’s Eve. The event has grown over the years to attract locals from all over who drive out to witness the magical lights.
“We realized how many cars were coming up and down the block. And we just thought, so last year was the first year, that we tried to tie it to a donation because we really wanted to use the traffic and the attention it was getting to kind of help out,” said Fox.
That’s when the neighbors partnered with The Food Bank Network of Somerset County and put out a donation bin in front of 1632 Southbrook Drive.
Last year, they collected around 325 pounds of food donations. Fox is hoping to reach 1,000 pounds of food donations this year.
“We love how our neighbors have embraced this and helped it grow. It’s such a great neighborhood and community,” according to the neighbors on their Bridgewater Tree Balls Facebook group.
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To view the illuminated Christmas balls take a drive down Crim Road from Mountaintop toward Washington Valley Road and look to your right coming down the hill.
For more information on the food bank visit www.somersetfoodbank.org.
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