A tradition once again in Burnside
By Christopher Harris
Civil War General Ambrose Burnside and Santa Claus have more in common than merely distinctive facial hair .
Come the holiday season , General Burnside Island will once again become Christmas Island .
The beloved seasonal light show that was once upon a time a Pulaski County tradition made a triumphant ho-hohomecoming in 2021 , with right at 10,000 cars taking the tour and city officials suggest that it will be even bigger and better this year .
“ The return of Christmas Island far exceeded our expectations !” said Burnside Tourism Director Alison Pyles . “ We were thrilled with how many people came through – right at 10,000 cars . I believe people were excited to have it back , especially since it was such a holiday season staple in its previous run .”
From 1993 to 2001 , the state park hosted an annual light display celebrating classic Christmas iconography , where families could drive through in their cars and see all manner of familiar shapes lit up brilliantly — reindeer , candy canes , even a giant tunnel of lights .
Eventually , the tradition died down due to volunteer fatigue and maintenance costs , and Christmas Island disappeared like Santa ’ s sleigh into the snowy night sky . But Burnside Mayor Robert Lawson had made it a goal to bring Christmas Island back to the community , and in 2021 , that sugar plum dream was finally realized .
Pyles wasn ’ t around for last year ’ s run ( run Rudolph ), but she and assistant tourism director Jerrica Flynn have teamed up to tackle what has become a year-long task , of getting ready for Christmas Island . That involves getting new lights , fixing trouble spots from last year , and of course , selling sponsorships for individual scenes — something Flynn has done so well , Pyles has dubbed her Burnside ’ s “ Queen of Christmas .” But that ’ s not all Flynn has done to earn that title . “ Jerrica Flynn has worked tirelessly to secure the best vendor village any light show has seen ,” said Pyles . “ She ’ s been able to secure a sponsor — Secure Storage Sheds . They will provide six customized sheds that will be delivered and utilized for vendor spaces . There will also be a photo-op area in the vendor village where people can take their own photos .”
Added Flynn , “( Secure Storage Sheds has ) locations from Kentucky all the way down south to Texas . We made contact with the Somerset-based one in July and have been working on this project ever since . They ’ re an awesome partner and we are so grateful for their generosity .”
Burnside has added approximately 30 scenes this year , up to 78 now . The route will be the same , but the “ only Christmas Crew on Lake Cumberland ” have filled in the dark spots from last year , and some of the old scenes are being replaced with improved visuals and more motion .
“ There were some spots that didn ’ t have as much lighting or as many scenes as we would have liked ,” said Pyles . “ We
20 • SEKY - Life in Southeast Kentucky november 2022