By Kelly Youngblood
When it comes to decorating for Christmas, Joe Dodge of Mahomet has superhuman powers.
His house at 206 N. Spruce Dr. in Mahomet boasts 25 wooden, life-size superheroes that he drew, cut and painted himself.
If you drive by, you’ll see the Hulk, Iron Man, Spiderman, the Flash and many more superheroes “helping” to decorate the yard and house with strands of Christmas lights.
Elisa Dodge says they decided to do a big display this year not only to share their Christmas spirit with the community but also for their two sons.
“We wanted them to have the ‘it’ house on the block. Hopefully this makes them proud,” she said.
Elisa said her husband, who is a semi driver for Sygma Network in Danville, has been secretly working on the project for nearly a year.
“I’m pretty sure the people in the neighborhood think we are nuts,” she said. “Even with all of the cutting, sawing, sanding, and painting that has gone on all year, Joe wanted to keep everything a secret. So, when he started putting these super heroes in the yard people finally knew what he had been working on in the garage all year.”
Since unveiling their holiday creation, Elisa says they have definitely seen an increase in traffic. “There’s a steady hum of cars idling through the cul-de-sac,” she said.
Elisa, who is a teacher at Dr. Howard Elementary in Champaign, says they were inspired to do “something different” after driving around and looking at Christmas lights last year.
Elisa describes her two sons, ages 5 and 2, as “totally obsessed” with Christmas and superheroes, which helped to inspire their current holiday display.
“With having two boys that love super heroes, it seemed like a crazy idea, but something that fit our personalities,” she said.
It’s not the first time the Dodges have went “all out” with their Christmas decorations. She recalls a time 10 years ago when they decided to “Griswold” their house.
“We lined the entire room with lights in rows every six inches. But, our home didn’t have enough outlets to support the idea, and after about three weeks we blew every light strand,” Elisa said.
Elisa says they have always done a lot of decorating for Christmas but not to the extent they’ve done this year. She says they plan to add more to it in the future.
The Dodges home is located in the Lakeview subdivision off of Tin Cup Road, at 206 N. Spruce Drive in Mahomet.
For more on Champaign-Urbana area Christmas Lights, please view our Lights Guide.