You may have seen the Billings North Pole on Stone Street. The display has over 200,000 lights. Not only does it bring joy to those who see it, but the Billings North Pole has also raised over 4,000 toys for children in need.
You probably haven’t seen the creator of the Billings North Pole, Chris Troup. Troup tends to shy away from the thousands of people that gather to see his magical display on 4516 Stone St.
“I’m not shy, but when it comes to this I’m like, what?" said Troup.
Troup starts working on the Billings North Pole from the beginning of September all the way till Dec. 1. It takes two months to make sure the display is perfect.
In the 14 years of its existence, each display has been different than the last.
“I love to replace the old with new, something new, that looks different you know. There’s a lot of things that have been in this display for 14, 15 years and I like to implement something new,” Troup said.
Every cutout in the display has been handmade by Troup in his garage. Christmas poles are hand painted, lights are maintained so that each one shines bright, and there are a ton of lights.
“There’s a couple hundred thousand,” said Troup.
This means that there are over three miles of power cords underneath the display. The lights are so bright, you can see them from the airport.
When the display is finished, Troup’s work isn’t. Troup and his family hand out over 15,000 candy canes to folks who stop by, but they’re not the only one in on the Christmas spirt. Troup’s next door neighbor, Eric Babb, spreads the joy as well.
“I do the hot chocolate, and I think that just enhances the whole thing, you get a candy cane and a hot chocolate. The weather’s finally turning to where it makes it worthwhile to finally have hot chocolate,” Babb said.
The Billings North Pole isn’t just about bright lights and candy canes. Troup and his family have raised over 4,000 donations in toys that are given to children in protective services.
“We’re going to have a toy run, Saturday the 11th of December if you’d like to drop off a toy or make a contribution. I’ll tell you what, Santa’s sleigh is getting packed,” Troup said.
Packed and ready to go at the Billings North Pole. As for why Troup creates such an elaborate display each year:
“I think a lot of people, and the children, inspire me to keep this going,” Troup said.
It takes two months of hard work, but to Troup, it’s worth it to bring joy to the Billings community.
