Decorating for the holidays has taken on an entirely new meaning for six Union County residents.

Some spent hours and others spent days stringing lights, blowing up inflatables, wiring everything together and doing a host of other electrical and decorating jobs for that perfect design.

And their hard work, time, energy and money paid off.

They are the winners of the 2009 Union County holiday house lighting contest.

Split into two categories — creative and elegant — these six homes were the best of the best out of a total of 12 homes entered in this year’s contest.

Union County Department of Recreation and Parks Program Director Heather Daum said while the number of entrants in this year’s lighting competition was down slightly from the average number of about 20 it was still a hard decision as to who would win.

“They all looked great,” she said. “It was very hard to choose — it is every year.”

But Daum added the seven new judges whom she drove around Thursday, Dec. 3, to see all the entries and make their decisions got it right.

“I’m very happy with all the winners,” she said. “They did a lot of hard work.”

Winners in this year’s creative category — homes with inflatables and other decorations that appeal more to the kids — are:

1. Clyde Seymore of 917 Lovers Lane Road, Union.

2. Sandy and Joe Wade of 233 Munro St., Union.

3. Wanda Garner of 237 Munro St., Union.

Winners in this year’s elegant category — homes which include more white lights or spotlights and other decorations more appealing to adults — are:

1. Paul Burgess of 165 Woodside Drive, Lockhart.

2. Dustin Blanton of 139 Hames Drive, Jonesville.

3. Rufus Walton of 321 Sardis Road, Union.

First-place winners each received $100, second-place winners each got $50 and the third-place winners each received $25 for a total prize fund of $350. Daum presented the awards to the winners at Tuesday night’s Union County Council meeting.

The county has held the annual contest more than 10 years and while most of the 2009 winners are repeat customers, many of them try to do something different each year or add more to their displays.

Creative category first-place winner Clyde Seymore has enjoyed decorating for Christmas his entire life but reported to The Times at the end of last month when he flipped the switch on his literal Winter Wonderland of lights and decorations on Lovers Lane he really got going about four years ago.

He’s continued making it larger each year — as per the request of his grandson Cole — and just this year added a van-load of lights and 20 more inflatables. The Seymore residence also features a drive-through path so anyone who wants to can come out and see the decorations.

"If you enjoy Christmas lights, you are invited to 917 Lovers Lane Road," Seymore said last month.

He already knows where the prize money is going, too.

“I believe we’ll add it to the power bill,” Seymore said, adding the bill to light all two and one-half acres of decorations he has can get a little high.

Plus, his wife said he couldn’t add anymore because she says he “has enough.”

But it’s all worth it.

“I get a lot of compliments from Union County, especially after the last three or four years,” Seymore said.

He said simply seeing people come out to his home and enjoy what he’s done is well worth the effort.

“That’s what makes it worthwhile,” Seymore said.

Kids seem to be a common theme for the creative category participants.

Next-door neighbors Wanda Garner and Sandy Wade on Munro Street in Union live down the road from a day care center and both said watching the kids’ faces light up when they see all of the lights and decorations in their yards is worth the effort they put into it each year.

“I have parents who talk about how they have to ride them by all the time to see it,” Wade said. “Plus, I’ve got grandkids that love it.”

She’s actually giving her prize money to her husband Joe because he’s the one who does all the work. Plus, her grandchildren will probably get some of it, too.

“I wasn’t in it to win it, really,” Garner said. “But it’s all worth it.”

She added the kids are what it’s all about. Her kids are even the ones who sign her up for the contest each time she’s been a participant.

Garner is using her prize money for a special reason.

“The $25 I got, I’m using to buy by Christmas ham,” she said. “If it wasn’t for that, I wouldn’t get one.”

The Burgesses of Lockhart have entered the lighting contest for several years but this is their first year to receive first place in the elegant category.

Paul’s wife Norma said he works about 13 hours a day and had to put up their decorations in his free time — which isn’t a lot. So he got help from his daughter and her boyfriend. She added he’s happy with his placing this year.

“It feels good because he’s always wanted to win first place in elegant,” Norma said. “He works hard with it. He likes to have everything in the right place, trust me.”

She added his prize money probably will go toward purchasing more lights and decorations — at least it has in the past.

For Dustin Blanton, this year’s lighting competition was somewhat of a surprise to him.

The competition’s only newcomer, Blanton only had a day — really — to get his home ready for judging.

“Basically, I put up a few lights for my son,” Blanton said. “He’s five this year. He wanted Christmas lights so he got them.”

A friend actually entered him into the contest and informed Blanton the Wednesday prior to judging. So he took the Thursday of judging off from work and added a few more lights — including the tree of lights in his front yard which he said could have had something to do with why he won second place.

He’s glad he put the work into it.

“It’s awesome,” Blanton said. “I never expected it. I never expect to win anything. If I’d knew it was a competition, I would have been doing it years ago.”

His son also is ecstatic with the win and it will be up to the toddler whether he and his dad enter again next year.

“As long as he wants to do it, I figure I’ll do it every year, I reckon,” Blanton said.

In fact, he already took some of the prize money and purchased more lights for next year’s contest. His son got $10 to take to school for a visit to Santa’s house.

Daum praised all of this year’s entries and said she and her department appreciate all the work and effort that people put into decorating their homes for the contest each year.

Also, if anyone would like a list of this year’s entries and their addresses to check them out themselves she will be more than happy to provide one if anyone wants to stop by the department’s office at 111 Thomas St. in Union.