If you were to lay out all the extension cords used in the Christmas decorations on campus, they would stretch from the Humphrey Center to the Wellness Center.

Every year at the end of November, the Grand View maintenance staff decorates the campus in lights. This hasn’t always been the case. Five years ago, Grand View had no decorating plan. There would be the occasional Christmas tree here and there but when the new plaza was completed, maintenance crew leaders, Kim Butler and Brad Erdmann, decided “Now that we have something cool (the plaza) we have to do something cool with it.”  

But cool things take money. According to Butler, there is no designated budget for the lights so the money comes from the maintenance crew, and as wear and tear happens and more of campus becomes lit, they have asked other student groups for money. As the student groups have given money, more has been done to decorate the green space and the timeline for when the lights are put up has also been changed. Starting Monday, the week before Thanksgiving, and finishing Tuesday, the week of Thanksgiving, this year it took about 100 man hours in nine days to put up all of the light displays. Butler and Erdmann sat down with Viewfinder staff and gave some numbers on the current light displays people see around Grand View these days.

2,800 Red and White Lights covered the skywalk

10 man hours to complete the skywalk

12 lighted hoops in the plaza

18 hours to hang garlands in plaza

840 red bulbs and 600 white bulbs cover the garlands in the plaza

58 decorated light poles along with 58 timers for each pole

58 decorations on top of poles

All Trees and Shrubs decorated