A California neighborhood’s holiday lights bring community together

It’s legendary. Like countless homeowners across the country, residents in Pasadena’s Upper Hastings Ranch neighborhood will decorate their houses for the December holidays. But this enclave is different. It has decked its homes as a group project for over 70 years. Adults who visited as kids now bring their own children and grandchildren. Yesteryear’s wooden Santa lawn ornaments mix with synchronized LED lights as a bus from a senior center rolls down the glowing streets.

“I’ve been coming here since a kid, and now I’m bringing my daughter here,” says Jason Sancho. He, his wife, Aiko, and their daughter are parked nearby, watching a wowie-zowie light show as Handel’s “Hallelujah” chorus punctuates the air. Mr. Sancho plans to visit four more times.

Sarah Wedel recalls driving around Upper Hastings Ranch as a kid. Her parents folded down the back seats of their car and slid a mattress in so the children could admire the lights from their makeshift bed on wheels.

Four-year-old Liam is happy – and that’s why this family keeps coming back, says Maria Tello, of nearby Reseda, California, with a grateful nod to the homeowners.

“Thank you,’’ she says.

My go-to place for holiday lights is the Los Angeles County Arboretum. For $30, I can walk through a cathedral of tiny white lights and wander in a field of tulip sculptures aflame with color. It’s a joyous outing for family and friends during dark December days.

But this year, the Arboretum canceled its Lightscape because of a construction project. I understood, but it felt a bit like the Grinch stealing Christmas. Then I remembered the annual neighborhood “Light Up” just up the hill from my front door.

It’s legendary. Like millions of people across the country, residents in Pasadena’s Upper Hastings Ranch neighborhood decorate their houses for the holidays. But this enclave of palm trees and ramblers is different. It has decked its homes as a group project for over 70 years. Joy bridges generations. Adults who visited as kids now bring their own children. Yesteryear’s wooden Santa lawn ornaments mix with synchronized LED lights as a bus from a senior center rolls down the glowing streets.

“I’ve been coming here since a kid, and now I’m bringing my daughter here,” says Jason Sancho. He, his wife Aiko, and their daughter are parked in front of the Harbeck family home on Tropical Avenue. Windows open, they’re watching a multi-media, wowie-zowie light show as a recording of Handel’s Hallelujah Chorus punctuates the air. Two years ago, the Harbecks won $50,000 in a national lights contest. Mr. Sancho plans to visit four more times. “It’s an awesome house,” he says.

The neighborhood Light Up started in 1951, when many homes were owned by World War II veterans, who bought them with GI loans. Residents first put out paper bag luminaries, which quickly evolved into themed street decorations and a competition. The local grocer awarded a turkey or ham to those with the best decorations. Today, the neighborhood association still hands out awards – bells that designate the residents’ top choice; the most humorous; most religious; and the best use of lights and theme.

Sarah Wedel, walking her dog on a recent afternoon with her neighbor Prashanti Thompson, recalls driving around Upper Hastings Ranch as a kid. Her parents folded down the back seats of their car and slid a mattress in so the children could sip cocoa and admire the lights from their makeshift bed on wheels.

Eventually, Ms. Wedel bought her grandparents’ home here. When her own children were little, they would wake from afternoon naps to catch the lights just as they were coming on. “It’s very sweet,” she says about the neighborhood at this time of year.