Street in Prosper Ignites the Christmas Spirit during Holiday Season
Kara SchofieldFeatured Photo: The Whitley Place Neighbors who set up Prosper’s Tunnel of Lights on their street, Beechwood Drive in Prosper, Texas. L to R: the MacDonalds, the Judds, the Powells, the Smith family, and the Goller family. Photo by Kacey Judd.
Frisco Square. Deerfield in Plano. Highland Park. Arlington. Texas Motor Speedway. If you are looking to drive through some holiday light displays this month in North Texas, these popular locations likely come to mind. But you might want to add a little spot to your list that is not only worth the drive but also entices you to view them outside your car: the Tunnel of Lights on Beechwood Drive in the Whitley Place neighborhood of Prosper.
Lincoln and Kacey Judd began this tradition in 2018, their first Christmas in Prosper, by lining their front walkway with hoop lights to welcome visitors. This sparked an idea to line all the sidewalks to make a connected tunnel down the entire street. The Judds approached their neighbors to see who might want to participate, and by 2020, it was officially a full collaborative endeavor.
Shannon MacDonald has lived on the street since 2017. Not only does she appreciate coming home to the beautifully lighted cul-de-sac herself during this season, she says, “But I really am impressed by how many people come and enjoy it.” She adds, “It’s nice that we were all willing to do it…. the payoff is seeing all the people out, strolling and enjoying it, and seeing that we’re providing something fun and special for some folks.” She feels that the lights add to the Christmas spirit on Beechwood.
Sara Imes, a Prosper resident for over seven years but newer to Beechwood Drive, loves to go outside at night and witness others experiencing a little magic of the season from walking through the hoops. Kids laugh and run; families and friends make memories together. Imes also points out, “Every house has their own flair!… I love that we can all be different but still come together for a common goal or project.”
Christina Powell has lived in Prosper for three years and never participated in a neighborhood Christmas lighting effort before, but declares it was a “no-brainer” to offer this seasonal gift to others. Her two teenage boys have even pitched in and enjoy inviting their friends over to walk through the lights together. “I’ve learned that our neighbors rally quickly around each other,” says Powell, “whether it’s to help out someone in need or to hop on board a fun neighborhood tradition!”
Gina Killian, a Prosper resident since 2017, won’t soon forget the rallying around of neighbors, particularly in December 2020 when her husband was hospitalized with COVID-19 for 11 days. Lincoln Judd and others came by to help her put up their lights in what naturally was a difficult time. “It seemed like something simple, but… it was so nice,” recalls Killian. “I think that year they had Christmas music that played softly with the lights and the hoops. With everyone that participated, pitched in… It just brought me peace.”
These neighbors attend different churches, but they all profess faith in Jesus Christ. As Killian points out, “Jesus is the reason for this season…. It’s just a special time to remember that He came for us.” Powell, a member of Greenville Oaks Church in Allen, adds, “Christmas is about giving of ourselves, making sacrifices for others in a variety of ways, like Jesus did for us by paying the ultimate sacrifice…. I cling to that in my heart, personally.”
MacDonald, a Methodist, also emphasizes service: “Just knowing that we’re giving a little something of ourselves to benefit others is a nice feeling… and I think that embodies the message of the holidays.” Imes, who attends Our Savior Lutheran Church in McKinney, says, “The simplicity of the hoops—and the joy they bring—is a great reminder to slow down, enjoy and give thanks for all the blessings we have been given. And to be a light to the world! (Matthew 5:16)”
The Judds, members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, have added a candy cane tree to their own section of the Tunnel of Lights in a nod to Kacey’s childhood “cookie tree,” a wooden tree from which her mother hung her famous homemade sugar cookies and displayed salt dough ornaments as the cookies disappeared.
Kacey sums up this neighborhood’s effort this way: “Our hope is that people can come [to the Tunnel of Lights] and find a moment of peace in this all-too-chaotic world! Christmas is such a magical time of year where the true source of light, which is Christ, is a little more present in people’s hearts. We just want to do something small to ignite that light in people that helps us to be a little kinder and more mindful of those around us.”
Come and see for yourself how one little street in a big-hearted town can fuel your Christmas spirit! The lights are on from 6-10 p.m. every night, from the day after Thanksgiving through December 31.
This article can be found at The Prosper Press.
Kara Schofield lives with her husband, nearly grown youngest, and the family doodle in the Prosper Texas Stake of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. She can often be found at one keyboard or another: writing, documenting personal and family history, accompanying school choirs, and learning how to play jazz music. Her greatest joys are her four children and their spouses, a sizable extended family, pies, mountains, and Jesus Christ.
