September 29, 2005

Christmas spirit in surplus for local resident

Santa Teresa resident Mark Dean loves Christmas.

One look at his home on San Anselmo Way in the Santa Teresa area of San Jose, and it’s easy to come to that conclusion.

That’s because Dean, 39, has gone to great lengths in the past two years decorating his home with enough lights, wooden and blow-up Christmas figurines and nativity scenes, among other things, to cover an entire city block.

Christmas spirit in surplus for local resident

In total, Dean has approximately 13,000 lights decorating his home and front yard, using 75 extension cords to help accomplish the mammoth feat of lighting his home each night. To decorate his home, Dean took one week off from work just prior to Thanksgiving, and spent a total of 40 hours decorating to get his home ready and festive for the holiday season.

“This is something I like to do,” said Dean. “I’ve been collecting (Christmas decorations and figures) for about 20 years now. It started out with just a few things and has quickly expanded. I have more in my garage, but I ran out of land to put things on. It’s just a hobby of mine and I really enjoy it.”

The hard-to-miss sight on San Anselmo Way has led to many visitors coming by to see the home with their own eyes. Dean estimates that he receives between 20 to 30 visitors per night during the weekdays and several more throughout the weekend.

“I love to see the smiles on the kids’ faces and it’s my way of giving back,” said Dean, who added that his electricity bill has quintupled as a result of powering 13,000 lights and other gadgets, including two projectors displaying Christmas scenes.

Dean said he was inspired to decorate his home by another Christmas enthusiast, Alan Aerts of Monte Sereno, who has gained notice around San Jose for the lavish and festive Christmas decorations on his home over the past few years.

But since the Christmas season is about giving, Dean has a dual purpose in decorating his home. For the first time last year, Dean held a Toys-for-Tots drive, which is sponsored through the U.S. Marine Corps, collecting approximately 150 toys for needy children.

The success of his inaugural run at the Toys-for-Tots drive has encouraged Dean to hold another drive this year. The idea of holding a toy drive was also inspired by Aerts, who holds a Toys-for-Tots drive each year as well.

“It’s my way of giving a little bit of Christmas to everybody,” Dean said of the toy drive. “I love it. It just brings me great joy.”

Dean is encouraging local residents to help donate toys to the Toys-for-Tots drive. Dean has three bins located around the front of his home each evening for residents to donate unwrapped new toys or new stuffed animals until 9:30 p.m. on weekdays and 11 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays. Dean’s home is located on 6408 San Anselmo Way.

—By Diego Abeloos