Extreme Decorations: Paprocki Home Christmas Lights

(ABC 6 News) – Every Wednesday in December, ABC 6 News Good Morning reporter Sydney Zatz shares how people in the community celebrate “big” for the holidays. In the last of her series, she shows how one home in Northwest Rochester literally lights up the neighborhood.

Hidden at 702 Westwood Ct NW is the Paprocki home. It sits on a quiet cul-de-sac but its decorations are far from that.

“I guestimate about 38,000 lights,” said homeowner Paul Paprocki.

About 20 years ago, Paprocki started with just a few string lights. Each year, he added more and more, and eventually, it became an annual event. A tradition inspired by a favorite childhood memory.

“There was a display we went to every year and it was just outstanding. I said ‘it’s such an inspiration.’ And then as I started to expand this, I said ‘Hey! I get to be that house now and have kids drive by and look at this display.'”

Paprocki starts decorating in September. With help from his daughter, he said it takes more than 300 hours to put it all together. It’s not just the lights he’s putting up, he’s also handmaking decorations.

“The trees, and the stocking, and I have a wreath that’s up. And the star on the roof. I sort of became an amateur carpenter and made frames for those. And so I like making the displays myself.”

With 600 strings of lights, the LED display surprisingly only adds about $60 to his energy bill.

Minnesota weather is one thing. For Paprocki, there’s a bigger issue – rabbits.

“For years I thought we were being vandalized. I’d get up in the morning and the lights had been cut. They’re very clean cuts. I actually filed police reports that there was vandalism.”

Buying a camera, he narrowed the suspect list down to rabbits. Now, he covers the ground lights with plywood every night.

Paprocki is already planning for next year. He’s bought about 4,000 new light strands. You can stop by the Paprocki House to see the display until January 7th. Lights will be lit every night until 10 p.m. with the display going until midnight on the weekends.