Oohs and aahs for dazzling light show at Oak Orchard Lighthouse
A new light now shines on an iconic site at Point Breeze
Photos by Tom Rivers
POINT BREEZE – The lights changed colors and direction, creating a Northern Lights feeling last night on the Oak Orchard Lighthouse.
Thursday was the debut of a new light show that is expected to be a nightly event well into the future.
About 100 people came out to see the first light show. It started at 8:45 p.m., a half hour after sunset. The light show is set to go every day a half hour after sunset. The show will be for 30 minutes. The 32-foot-high lighthouse, built in 2010, will then be illumined at night with low intensity white light.
“It’s very calming,” said Wendy Young of Kendall. “I think it will be a great draw for the area.”
Marlene Seielstad and her husband Erik were among the crowd gathered to see the light show. The Seielstads brought their own lawn chairs.
“It’s very cool,” Mrs. Seielstad said. “It’s definitely brighter than I thought.”
She said it will be interesting to come back as the weather changes to see how the light reflects off the trees, ground and lighthouse in different conditions.
The Oak Orchard Lighthouse museum received a $5,000 grant through the Genesee-Orleans Regional Arts Council for the project. Museum officials led by volunteer Cheryl Giacherio wanted to create a Northern Lights effect on the lighthouse.
They saw photos of the lighthouse from May 10, 2024 when there was a dazzling display of the Northern Lights. The spectacle in the sky has inspired the lighthouse’s board of directors to pursue a light show on the structure.
The museum touts the new light as “Aurora Over The Lighthouse.” The museum contracted with IlluminFx Lighting Systems in Rochester for the display. That company has created lighting shows for the Alamo, a battleship in Wilmington, NC and the nearby Churchville dam in Monroe County.
Larry Albanese, museum vice president, is very pleased with the result. He expects many lighthouse lovers and other curiosity seekers will make the trek to Point Breeze to see the light show.
“This is the only lighthouse lit up like this,” he said.
There will also be about a dozen other special displays on holidays, including the upcoming Labor Day.
David Giacherio, another museum volunteer, helped dig the holes for the four corner lights. There are also 192 smaller lights on the top part of the lighthouse.
“This will be a benefit to the community,” Giacherio said.
It brings more attention to the lighthouse, shining a new light on an iconic building. He hopes the local businesses see more customers because of the light show.
He credited his wife Cheryl for bringing the energy to bring an idea from about a year ago to reality. Mrs. Giacherio had the idea to light up the lighthouse in multiple moving colors, and she found the company to do it. The museum board rallied behind the project, securing the funding through GO Art!
“The whole thing has been a lot of fun,” Mr. Giacherio said about the year-long effort. “It all came together. I think it’s kind of cool.”
Many people wanted to be part of history and get photos of the debut lights show.
