Page 42 December 2012 Lee Sepanek decorates his entire home, including the cactus. Photos by Greg Bruns. Despite the work, lights must go on By Jasmine Barta During Christmastime, Lee and Patricia Sepanek’s house is a sight to see. With vibrant and awe-inspiring Christmas lights and displays everywhere, some have a hard time believing there is a house underneath the spectacle that has attracted people from around the world, including Alice Cooper and Muhammad Ali. “I’ve told people before, I would have never gotten the opportunity to shake the hand of Muhammad Ali if it wasn’t for my Christmas lights,” Sepanek said. “We get actors and actresses, too.” If you looked at the house in all its splendor you might think Santa’s elves took a few weeks off to lend a hand in decorating. There are, in fact, only three people responsible for the Christmas decorations that draw hundreds of people in between Thanksgiving and Christmas. Sepanek has just himself, his wife and one other man he calls his own personal “elf,” “E.J.” Sepanek found EJ years ago decorating a neighbor’s home. He has been working with Sepanek for six years now. “I get a lot of people who ask me, ‘Is this a house?’ because when this is all lit up they think it’s a B&B or a hotel. Yes, this is my home,” Sepanek said. “People ask me all the time if I live here. “So if I’m in a really good mood I’ll look them straight in the face as serious as can be and say: ‘No I don’t live here. The people who live here are gone on vacation and while they were away I went ahead and decorated this place. Won’t they be so surprised when they come home?’ Then I’ll start laughing.” Sepanek’s been decorating houses since he was 10 years old and living in his small New England hometown where he would go door-to-door selling Christmas trees and sit by the window to watch cars drive by to look at his family’s lights. When Lee and Patricia moved to Arizona in 1973, there wasn’t an immediate decision to put up an immense amount of lights. It wasn’t until they had their fi rst child who requested more Christmas lights that a tradition was born. Lee and his son would go Christmas lights shopping during after-Christmas sales every year. “That’s where it started. And every year we’d add a little more and a little more. Then I knocked out my windows to make big display windows,” Sepanek said. “I told my wife I was making her a breakfast nook. She didn’t fall for it. But that’s how it got started.” From that point on, the tradition just grew and grew. Now, it’s fondly referred to as an “obsession” in the Sepanek household, but Lee doesn’t regret starting the time-consuming ritual for one second and maintains that many of the wonderful things he has witnessed over his years he never would have seen without the lights. “I’ve had people come to propose,” Sepanek said. “I had a guy come to me before the holiday and he approached me and said ‘I want to bring my girlfriend here; she loves your home. I want to propose to her. Continued on page 48 Your Smile Says It All! Sunset Hills Family Dental 4202 N. 32nd St., Ste E • 602-955-8760 Dr. Stephen Conrad • Complete Dentistry • phoenixcaringdentist.com Over 20 years of caring • Emergencies and second opinions welcome (Reg. $297) Off er expires in 30 days. Includes exam, cleaning & x-rays. Off er good in absence of gum disease. New Patients Only. (New Patients Only. Offers open to first 60 patients to schedule appointment. Other services not included.) 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Page 43 December 2012 Train displays raise money to aid children’s center By Kyle Renick The Arizona Big Train Operators prepare to hold their open houses event, displaying the model train layouts at houses around the metropolitan area to raise money for Cardon Children’s Medical Center in Mesa. Glenn Saber, 58, is among the 16 Arizona Big Train Operators members opening their houses to the public. For the third year in a row, Saber is showing both his indoor and outdoor displays at his home near 34th Street and Camelback Road. “I love doing the open houses,” he said. “I love people coming in and enjoying the trains.” Saber’s garden train display, which he built three years ago, is 10 feet by 12 feet and is elevated on piers a few feet off the ground to keep it safe from water and irrigation. During the open house, he lets the kids operate it. For Saber, it is fun to get a younger generation interested in model trains again, he said. The models in his indoor display are pre-war tinplate trains, so called because of their tinplate frames used in the early to mid 1900s. His indoor display is more popular with the older crowds, because people can remember seeing those trains when they were children, Saber said. Saber’s will be the only home in the Arcadia area opening its doors to the public this year, with the other houses spread across Mesa, Chandler, Gilbert, Scottsdale, Sun Lakes, Gold Canyon and Santan Valley. The event collects money by donation, raising anywhere from $2,000 to $5,000 each year. The money goes for keeping and maintaining the indoor train garden at Cardon Children’s Medical Center. It’s easy for train parts to gain wear and tear, even model trains, Saber said. Saber is a longtime train enthusiast who has had an interest in them since a young age. “I still have my childhood train sets,” he said. The event is Friday through Sunday on the weekends of Dec. 7 and Dec. 14 from 5:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m., but only certain displays are open Fridays. Schedule details and maps are at http://azbigtrains.org. arcadiadaily.com arcadiadaily.com At Brookdale ® Place Paradise Valley, we’ll help you solve your retirement puzzle! From the subtle to the sublime, we provide the services and amenities that promote a lifestyle of happiness, fun and fulfillment. Optimum Life ® helps residents live at their peak level in six key areas or dimensions of wellness: purposeful, spiritual, emotional, social, intellectual and physical. And with Innovative Senior Care SM , residents have access to convenient on-site therapy services. Nearly all the pieces are in place. The only one missing … is you! UÊÊ >ÞÊ,iÃÌ>ÕÀ>ÌÊ } UÊÀiiÊ7 UÊ7>}Ê*>Ì Ã UÊ-V i`Õi`Ê/À>ëÀÌ>Ì UÊ"ÕÌ}ÃÊ>`Ê >ÞÊ/À«Ã UÊ-V>Ê ÛiÌà UÊ-> UÊ7iiÞÊ>««ÞÊÕÀà UÊ/>Ê Ê>`Ê9}> UÊ<ÕL> UÊi>Ìi`Ê* UÊ Ê*` Come for a visit and stay for lunch! 9ÕÀÊÃÌÀÞÊVÌÕiÃÊ iÀi°°° Independent Living Personalized Assisted Living 13240 North Tatum Boulevard Phoenix, Arizona 85032 1-888-396-6692 www.brookdaleliving.com ®Reg. U.S. Patent and TM Office. 00783-ROP01-0812 SC Med Spa & Day Spa Med Spa & Day Spa Specials Specials www.BodyBeautifulSpa.net • 4449 N 24th Street • 602-522-9222 Get 2 Massage Gift Certi k cates for just $99 This year give the gift of health and well-being. Give both away, or keep one for yourself! Call 602-522-9222 to order your personalized Gift Certi ĺ cates now, or buy them online at www.BodyBeautifulSpa.net. Look Great for New Years! Look Great for New Years! 20 Units of Botox and One Syringe of Juvederm just $489 (reg. $679) Save a bundle when you erase wrinkles with Botox and restore youthful facial fullness with Juvederm.