JACKSON – It has been nearly a decade since the Cook Family began a holiday tradition in the township that has many people traveling into their neighborhood for a yuletide spectacle.
Their home will be lit up once again to dazzle holiday revelers with the side benefit of also raising money for a good cause, the National Multiple Sclerosis Society.
“My stepson was diagnosed with juvenile MS at the age of 13. They say that between 5,000 and 11,000 kids have MS. It is rare that they are diagnosed that young. His first symptom was that he went blind in his left eye. He got the vision back after some treatments but he’s doing great,” Michael Cook said.
Last year, the event was more well attended than ever. It appeared that the coronavirus pandemic drew even more people to the holiday house of Michael and Carol Cook as they were looking for some brightness – not only for the holidays but in their lives as well. The couple have played host to the holiday house since 2012.
Michael Cook and members of his family are ready to once again make this year’s festive display at their 1 Carlson Court home even more special than ever. The decoration process began back in July with some preparation. Michael told The Jackson Times that this year, 70% of its former lights were replaced with pixel lighting.
“Seventy percent of our lights are no longer LED Christmas lights. We are kind of going high tech we switched everything to what is called pixels. That has generated a lot of work,” he said.
Last year he said the house had more than 30,000 lights, four singing trees, a 20-foot spiral tree and a “1,008-bulb pixel matrix which we can do imaging with.”
“We decided this year to make the leap and convert over to all pixels because you can do so much with them. You can control each individual light so it is no longer an issue of controlling a string of lights. We can do some really cool effects with it now because you can control each individual bulb,” he added.
“We get a lift every year and one of my sons helps me when I’m on the lift but mostly it is my wife and I doing most everything,” Cook said.
“Like Mike, I am very excited about the show this year. We have changed most of the lighting, which will make a huge difference. We will now be able to do so much more with the sequences,” Carol Cook said.
“Last year we had two wedding proposals back-to-back in two nights. That was kind of cool,” Mike Cook said.
She added, “each year we have tried to add more to our display, but this year will be our best. It is still overwhelming to us how many people come by our show, but more importantly how generous people are with their donations for the Multiple Sclerosis Society.”
All the lights are synchronized to music. The show consists of seven songs and runs for approximately 20 minutes. Guests must turn their radio dial to 100.9 FM to hear the music with the show.
“Our start date is the Saturday after Thanksgiving and like past years will run all the way through New Year’s night,” Mike Cook said. It will run from 6-10 p.m. Sunday – Thursday, and 6-11 p.m. Friday and Saturday.
While the show is free the family accepts donations for MS. Last year to accommodate those who had safety concerns during the pandemic, the Cooks added Zenmo for those who wish to donate to the cause.
Zenmo is an app that is used to transfer money back and forth. The address for it is Cooks’ Christmas. Their Facebook page is Cooks Christmas NJ. “Every penny goes to the National MS Society,” Mike Cook said.
Another tradition of the event has Michael Cook wearing his favorite holiday hat which is a bright orange Santa cap. The cap has the letters MS across the top and was presented to him by representatives of the National Multiple Sclerosis Society. Orange is the color for the cause of curing MS.
“The MS Society is the primary driver of research. That is why we picked them to donate to because we don’t only want better treatments – which is nice – but we want a cure. They are researching that and coming closer and closer to it,” Michael Cook added.
He said previously that “just the idea that people are willing to donate money to a cause like that because we have a house with a Christmas display is really overwhelming.”
The Christmas couple is often asked about the cost of electric from the display. Carol Cook said “it isn’t all that bad at all.”
She added, “We can’t tell how many people stop by and see the house.” Her husband added, “last year we handed out over 4,500 candy canes” while greeting spectators up and down the road.
“We try to add or change something to make it new for those who have been coming every year. There are a lot of changes this year from the previous years,” he added.
