© 2024 University of Missouri - KBIA
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Affton woman drives hundreds of miles documenting seasonal light displays

O'Fallon, Missouri, resident Ryan Brzostowski's home is featured as part of Laura Thake's website.
Laura Thake
O'Fallon, Missouri, resident Ryan Brzostowski's home is featured as part of Laura Thake's website.
O'Fallon, Missouri, resident Ryan Brzostowski's home is featured as part of Laura Thake's website.
Credit Laura Thake
O'Fallon, Missouri, resident Ryan Brzostowski's home is featured as part of Laura Thake's website.

There are several well-known holiday light displays in the St. Louis area.

The Way of Lights at Our Lady of the Snows Shrine in Belleville, Winter Wonderland in Tilles Park and many of the houses on Candy Cane Lane in south St. Louis come to mind.

Laura Thake, a woman from Affton, is taking a different approach to spreading Christmas cheer. Since 2016, she’s driven hundreds of miles throughout the region documenting the best home light displays and posting the photos and videos – with permission from homeowners – to her website.

On Thursday’s St. Louis on the Air, host Don Marsh talked with Thake about her travels. Also joining the conversation was Ryan Brzostowski, a resident of O’Fallon, Missouri, whose house is featured on the website.

St. Louis on the Air brings you the stories of St. Louis and the people who live, work and create in our region. St. Louis on the Air host Don Marsh and producers Alex HeuerEvie HemphillLara Hamdan and Xandra Ellin give you the information you need to make informed decisions and stay in touch with our diverse and vibrant St. Louis region.

Copyright 2021 St. Louis Public Radio. To see more, visit St. Louis Public Radio.

Alex Heuer joined St. Louis Public Radio in 2012 and is the executive producer of St. Louis on the Air. Alex grew up in the St. Louis area. He began his public radio career as a student reporter at Tri States Public Radio in Macomb, Illinois and worked for a few years at Iowa Public Radio. Alex graduated summa cum laude from Western Illinois University with a degree in history and earned a teaching certificate in 6 - 12th grade social studies. In 2016, he earned a Master of Public Policy Administration with a focus in nonprofit organization management and leadership from the University of Missouri-St. Louis. He has won local and national awards for reporting and producing and his stories have been featured nationally on Morning Edition and All Things Considered.