Lighting the Way

Howard County General Hospital’s display of holiday lights, now in its 22nd year, returns to its drive-through course in Merriweather Park at Symphony Woods.

By Judy F. Minkove on 11/30/2016

Published in Dome - December 2016

A dazzling display of more than 100 oversized animated and stationary holiday light creations—made up of some 250,000 LED colorful bulbs—awaits visitors to Howard County General Hospital’s Symphony of Lights. Now in its 22nd year, the popular holiday drive-through course in Merriweather Park at Symphony Woods has attracted nearly 2 million people since 1995. Proceeds from the event in Columbia, Maryland, have raised more than $7.5 million to benefit the hospital. New elements this year include a laser light show, 3-D holiday video (projected 50 feet high at Merriweather Post Pavilion) and an outdoor skating rink.

Howard County General Hospital’s Symphony of Lights

How a Family Excursion Became an Annual Pilgrimage

For Dave DiDonato and his family, the Symphony of Lights has become a highly anticipated event. Since 2011, DiDonato, a senior financial analyst at Howard County General Hospital, and his wife, Erin, have delighted their children with their own twist on the Christmas movie The Polar Express.

Calling their van/excursion the Minivan Express, Erin creates a ticket to ride in the vehicle for each of their three children, now ages 12, 7 and 5. On a night that works best for their schedules—but not revealed ahead of time—they begin the normal bedtime routine.

But once the children are settled in their beds, Dave and his wife make popcorn and hot chocolate and package it up for the trip. Then they go upstairs to each of the children’s rooms and hand them new footy pajamas, telling the kids that they need to come downstairs. (Now that the children are older, the ruse is hardly a surprise, but they still eagerly await their parents’ arrival, says Dave.)

Erin gives each child a ticket to ride the Minivan Express and then sends the kids outside. Their dad acts as the conductor and gives the “All aboard!” call, and punches their tickets before they climb into the minivan. Then, they begin the 20-minute journey to the Symphony of Lights.

During the drive, the parents play Christmas music and, of course, the hot chocolate song from The Polar Express, while handing out hot chocolate and popcorn. Once they arrive at the Symphony of Lights, ooh-ing and ahh-ing follow, and everyone calls out new attractions.

What keeps them coming back? “It’s the fun of the event for a good cause,” says Dave. But there’s a deeper reason—a teaching moment—he adds: “The light allows us to talk about the specific meaning behind the holidays, understanding that Jesus is the light of the world and that we have the opportunity to celebrate His birth each year during Christmas. It’s part of our Christian tradition.” And, hopefully, he says, “They’ll grow up remembering how to make traditions special.”

Outfitted in their new pajamas, Ava, Hannah and Jackson DiDinato display their tickets before boarding “The Minivan Express” to the Symphony of Lights.

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Lighting the Way