Whether it’s contests or the lottery, you’ve got to be in it to win it, and for Batavia resident Brett Foy, the chance for he and his family to be on national television Thursday night to showcase their home’s holiday lights display made a winner out of everybody.
Foy and his family were the first feature seen by millions across the country Thursday night on ABC’s “The Great Christmas Light Fight.”
The program lets contestants from around the country show off their own unique Christmas decorations while competing for a $50,000 prize.
The show Thursday night included the Foys as well as the Hughes family from Rockwall, Texas; the Connor family, formerly of Perris, California; and the Campbell family from Oxford, North Carolina, who won and took home the prize money.
A group of more than three dozen gathered at Pal Joey’s restaurant in Batavia Thursday night for a viewing party to watch the outcome of the contest, a result that Foy already knew.
“I did have to sign (a non-discloser agreement) regarding the contest, but it wasn’t a big deal being around people who didn’t know how the contest was going to end up,” Foy said Friday morning. “If you win they come back and tell you, so people know. It wasn’t hard to sit there. I’ve had a lot of time to process this.”
The judge of Foy’s display was co-host and lifestyle expert Carter Oosterhouse, who, he said, “is drawn to new things.”
One of the unique features of the Campbells’ winning display was a pair of cars and a race track that was part of the installation.
While Foy knew he had not won, he joined millions of other viewers Thursday night in watching the competition for the very first time.
“Part of the contract is we’re not allowed to try and figure out who our competition is,” he said. “We’re not allowed to talk about it or say who our judge was or who our competition is and it’s really better that way. There were three great displays. Everybody that does this does it out of a passion and a joy for lights, and Christmas, and community, so it’s like we’re not even competing. It’s people trying to bring light to the world and the judges liked (the Campbells’) light more. We’re all a family. People do this because they’re crazy and because we care about everybody around us.”
Foy’s home in Batavia at 969 Ekman Drive first appeared on the radar of producers for the show back in 2021 after Foy applied to take part in the contest, and they continued to monitor his decorations before choosing him for the show back in the summer of 2023.
“You apply once. The casting directors reach out to you and review what you’ve got,” he said. “They let you know if you’re in or out and they give you coaching about how to better present yourself the next year. I kind of decided I really didn’t care after 2022 but they reached out and said ‘Don’t give up, this might be your year’ and later greenlighted the show. Everybody in the production crew and cast were great to work with.”
Foy said the joy of doing the show outweighs any sort of disappointment about not winning the competition.
“Listen, we got to do a national TV show. It was a lot of fun for myself and the kids – a once-in-a-lifetime experience for all of us,” he said.
He said the whole process of making the program was interesting.
“Getting to see the magic of how they make a TV show, they probably had 40 or 50 or 60 hours of footage and they whittle it down to 10 minutes,” he said.
He said the viewing party Thursday night was special.
“It was about being there with 30 to 40 people who were excited to be there because they love what we do,” he said. “It doesn’t matter if you win. I’m a winner every day. I get people telling me the stories about how valuable to their lives my light show is and I already feel like a winner. I look outside, I see the line of cars, that’s all I need.”
The viewing party also served as a fundraiser for Foy’s favorite local charity, the Batavia Mothers Club Foundation.
Foy said the evening netted $750, which will be added to donations to the foundation made by those visiting the lights display at his house.
“So far, we’ve collected a little over $2,700 and we’re more than halfway there and we’ve got 28 days to go,” Foy said about his goal of reaching $5,000. “I’m excited. Hopefully we’ll hit our goal.”
David Sharos is a freelance reporter for The Beacon-News.
