BROKEN ARROW, Ok.a. — BROKEN ARROW, Okla. — A Broken Arrow holiday tradition is back and bigger than ever.
Rhema Bible College on Kenosha is putting the finishing touches on its annual Christmas lights display — a tradition that dates back over four decades.
"We've actually been doing the Christmas lights since 1982. Initially, we started out and there were only about 60,000 lights," said Rob Betts, community relations representative at Rhema Bible College.
This year, Betts tells 2 News Oklahoma the display has grown and it looks a little different than years past.
"This year we have over 2 million lights. We've done some color scheme changes and so it's not the same light show every year," Betts said.
The display features both secular and religious Christmas-themed scenes. For Betts and the Rhema community, the message behind the lights has always been clear.
"The message was that Jesus is the light of the world, and so when people come by here for Christmastime, it's a way that we're able to show them that light," Betts said.
Students at Rhema Bible College play a major role in making the event happen each year, volunteering and working as part of the light crew.
New this year is an expanded Christmas train attraction.
"We added some new cabooses — actually two new train cars added to it. So we've got even more capacity now, so the lines are gonna be shorter for that," Betts said.
For Nick Fernandez, who works nearby and has watched the lights going up since August, the display is something special.
"It's really amazing and mesmerizing. I mean, 60,000 sounds great, but 2 million — it's really something to see, and I really encourage everyone to come out and check it out," Fernandez said.
"I was surprised in August they started putting them all up, and I didn't realize that they did it so soon, but they do so many lights out here, and that's what I love and everyone I think else loves coming out here to see all of the lights, even during the day, you know, maybe they're just testing them, but even during the day you can see them and it looks beautiful and it just adds such a cheerful seasonal vibe."
Thousands of visitors are expected each night, with families, grandparents, and children in strollers all taking part. Visitors can walk through the display or drive through at their own pace.
The lights officially switch on Nov. 25 at 5:30 p.m. and run nightly through Jan. 1. Admission is free. Concessions and train tickets are available for purchase.
Bett tells 2 News Oklahoma LED lights make the cost of the display affordable for the college and most of it is funded through the concessions and train rides.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
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